Today’s reading

Psalms 116-118;  First Corinthians 2

Selected Verses

Gracious is the Lord, and righteous;
    our God is merciful.
The Lord preserves the simple;
    when I was brought low, he saved me.
Return, O my soul, to your rest;
    for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.  Psalm 116:5-7

Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. First Corinthians 2:12

Reflections

The generosity of the Lord to His people is beyond measure.  It is worthy of a continual sacrifice of praise. In Psalm 116, the writer revels in God’s blessings to him.  He recognizes God’s mercy and grace in the face of impending death, in a time of distress and anguish.  He wonders how to make any kind of sufficient offering to the Lord for all he has received from His hand.  “I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving,” he promises in vs. 17.

Why has God so richly blessed him?  One quality which the Lord looks for in those He blesses is simplicity.  He preserves the simple, we read in vs. 6.  The simple are receptive to God’s Law.   Psalm 19:7 tells us “the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.”   The simple become wise because they pay attention to God’s Word.

Paul continues with his message to the Corinthians showing them that it was not lofty speech that he used to win them to Christ, but rather the simple message of Jesus Christ who was crucified.  Those who believe and are mature are able to receive wisdom from God revealed by His Spirit to His people.  The spirit of the world is of no assistance in knowing God, but God’s Spirit reveals the things that no one could even imagine, the things that God has freely given to His own.

Think about it

The disciple of Jesus Christ is one who has become like a child, simple, trusting in the One who came to make the Father known and to save His people from their sins (Matthew 18:1-4;1:21; John 1:14-18). He leads us to wisdom and blessing from the Lord.  Seek to always be found among the simple.

© 2017 John A Carroll  Used by permission