God Delights In UsSpeaker: Sis. Stella Dhinakaran Gist: When you walk in the fear of the Lord, your life will be made holy. God will lead you to triumph in Christ. The more intently you read the Bible, the more fragrantly the sweet aroma will flow in your life. "I will accept you as a sweet aroma when I bring you out from the peoples and gather you out of the countries where you have been scattered; and I will be hallowed in you before the Gentiles" (Ezekiel 20:41).
Friend, according to 1 Peter 2:5,9, God transforms us into a chosen generation of royal priesthood, His own special people, offering up spiritual sacrifices.
Lord Jesus is our High Priest (Hebrews 7:26). We are a gathering of holy royal priests. Priests offer sacrifices to Him. In the same way, God makes us offer our sacrifices.
"I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service." (Romans 12:1)
In the Bible, we read that when Noah offered burnt-offerings on the altar, the Lord smelled a soothing aroma (Genesis 8:20,21). Therefore, let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name (Hebrews 13:15).
Praise God for His blessings of a good life partner, children, employment and a sweet home. Let us praise God for every blessing that He has showered on us.
In our family, all of us after morning prayer go to different places in a hurry, for the sake of the ministry. As far as possible, we have our breakfast together and then we gather together only in the night. We share every wonderful deed that the Lord had done on that day. At supper, we praise the Lord together before food. What a great pleasure to dine together, praising our great God. We should make it a habit to thank God before having our food. No food is to refused if it is received with a thanksgiving (1 Timothy 4:4), as the Bible tells us. So learn to thank God before food and always.
Some sisters ask us to pray for them when their husband's hostile attitude to their family makes them unhappy and desperate. The only counsel I give them is, "Fast and Pray; that is the only way out." Because that is what I did when I struggled in my life. When the sisters report a little improvement, I will write to them again, "Praise God, with your tongue, loudly for the change which God will perfect soon. There are many who heard my counsel and were benefited immensely. So, do not fail to offer your sacrifice of thanksgiving, for each blessing to God.
"His delight is in the fear of the Lord, and He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, nor decide by the hearing of His ears." (Isaiah 11:3)
The fear of the Lord is not an ordinary phenomenon; it is a committed experience, which comes about avoiding a wrong act, a wrong deed, and a wrong path.
"The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverse mouth I hate." (Proverbs 8:13)
"Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling." (Philippians 2:12)
Upholding the foregoing the Biblical verses, if you pray genuinely, "O Lord, I want to lead my life in fear of You; kindly help me," He will grant a sweet aroma to emerge from your life. He will give you not 'a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind' (2 Timothy 1:7). When the Holy Spirit fills you, weak vessels, you will receive a new divine strength. All kinds of fear will flee and vanish. You will receive life from God with a divine crystal-clear knowledge.
"Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God." (2 Corinthians 7:1)
"And they shall call them the holy people, the redeemed of the Lord; and you shall be called sought out, a city not forsaken." (Isaiah 62:12)
Dear friend, in harmony with this verse, when you walk in the fear of the Lord, your life will be made holy. God will lead you to triumph in Christ and diffuses through you the fragrance of His knowledge (2 Corinthians 2:14). The more intently you read the Bible, the more fragrantly the sweet aroma will flow in your life. You are not a forsaken person any more. You are the holy people of God. He is delighted in you. He will lead you in the path of peace. He will grant you the peace to spread around a sweet aroma of fragrance.
Prayer:
Loving Heavenly Father,
I thank You for all the blessings that You have showered on me. Help me to lift the sacrifices of thanksgiving always. Teach to fast and pray fervently. Let everything that I do be done for Your and Your glory alone. Make me an instrument to lead others to Your kingdom. Help me to be a living sacrifice. In Jesus' matchless name, I pray.
Amen. |