FBC Daily Devotional – January 28, 2022

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A brief bit of encouragement for your day from God’s Word

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Well, a good Friday morning to you. How are you doing through this week? Has it been a good week for you?
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Have you made some progress in your walk with the Lord? Slight as it may be. Remember, in your walk with the
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Lord, it's just one step at a time, one day at a time.
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Well, we're moving toward the weekend and I'm looking forward to the Lord's Day, looking forward to Dr.
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Forman's Sunday School lesson at 9 .30 Sunday morning. He's teaching this series fearfully and wonderfully made.
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It's been very good and I hope you can join us for that. If you can't be here in person for that, we are recording those lessons, the video lessons, and they will be up by noon on Monday, Lord willing.
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But then also, of course, at 10 .30, the morning worship service. Be gathering together with God's people and worshiping the
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Lord together. And I've been in the book of 1 Peter and in a series entitled
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Truth for Troubled Times. And boy, these are these are just some good passages that we need in these days.
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So if you can join us on the Lord's Day, I hope you will do so. For today, we are reading in Psalm 11, part of our reading in the
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Bible reading plan, Psalm 11. And from this Psalm, I just want to ask two questions that come out of the
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Psalm. The first question is when when do I take refuge in the
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Lord? So the first verse begins this way. The Psalmist David, he says, in the
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Lord I put my trust. In the Lord I put my trust. So how can you say to my soul, flee as a bird to the mountain.
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And he goes on to explain that the wicked are bending their bow, they're making ready their arrow on the string, that they may shoot secretly at the upright in heart.
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So whether this is literal or figurative, it's not really the point right now.
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The point is he feels a danger and with that danger comes fear.
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And fear can say to him, you need to run, you need to flee as a bird to the mountain.
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He says, no, I put my trust in the Lord. I'm finding my refuge,
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I'm taking my refuge in him. So when do I take refuge in the
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Lord? When do I do that? What are the occasions, what are the occasions when
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I flee to him for help and protection? What comes my way that causes me to run to him?
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Well, just think about the temptations that you face day after day. You know, what do you do in those times of testing, those times of temptation?
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Where do you go? What do you, how do you handle it? Trust in the Lord. Lean not to your own understanding.
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In all your ways acknowledge him. He will direct your paths. As the Bible tells us in 1
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Corinthians, there's no temptation taking you, but such is common to man. But God is faithful who will provide a way of escape that you may be able to bear it.
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But do you flee to him? That you may take that way of escape? Or do you rely upon your natural inclination?
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And that natural inclination may be like, well, I can figure this out. I can handle this on my own.
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You know, I can enlist somebody else and they'll help me or, you know, they'll protect me or whatever.
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So our inclination may be to trust in ourselves. Our inclination may be to take refuge in our own abilities and our own ingenuity.
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Our inclination may be to take refuge in other people and our friends or loved ones or whatever.
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Or our inclination may be to take refuge even in our government of all things.
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Where do you find your refuge? I challenge us to answer the question in the
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Lord. I take refuge in the Lord. The other question comes out of the last half of the psalm.
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He points out in verse 7, the psalmist does, that the Lord is in his holy temple. The Lord's throne is in heaven.
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His eyes behold. Now get this. The eyes of the Lord behold. His eyelids test the sons of men.
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And he sees all of us. His eyes are upon all of us at all time. And of course, this is a figurative expression.
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His eyes. God doesn't have literal eyes like you and I. Literal physical eyes can only be in one place at one time.
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Let the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth. See whose heart is perfect toward him.
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Yeah, the eyes of the Lord are everywhere, present all the time. And his eyes who behold us all, all the time.
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They test us. So what does he see? What does he see?
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Does the righteous Lord who loves righteous deeds love what he sees in me?
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Does he love what he sees from me? This verse goes on, this passage goes on to say that the
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Lord tests the righteous. But the wicked and the one who loves violence, his soul hates, detests.
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Upon the wicked he will rain coals, fire and brimstone, and burning wind shall be the portion of their cup.
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What does the Lord see? With his eyes when he beholds me.
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When he looks within me. Does he see righteous heart?
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When he looks at my course of action, my course of life, does he see a righteous path?
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When he looks at my day -to -day work and occupation, does he see righteous labor? Is the
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Lord pleased by what he sees? What does he see in me? Because he does see.
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You see, those are a couple of good questions to ask ourselves today. Am I, am
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I trusting in the Lord? Am I seeking refuge in him? Does the
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Lord in whom I seek refuge, does he see, does he see righteous deeds coming from one of his own children?
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You know, the Bible says that we who are in Christ Jesus, we are righteous, we're declared righteous.
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As declared righteous, should we not practice righteousness? Should not our righteous
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Lord who loves righteousness see righteous deeds in his righteous people?
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Yes, yes, indeed he should. I trust he shall. Our Father and our
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God, I pray that just considering these two questions, we would consider them honestly.
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We would take stock personally, and we would respond accordingly. We pray this in Jesus' name and for his sake.
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Amen. All right. Well, I hope you have a wonderful rest of your day today and weekend ahead, and I trust that it will be a blessed one.