We Need to Talk | Lesson 15

 Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me: and to him that ordereth his conversation aright will I shew the salvation of God. --Psalm 50:23 

"We need to talk " | Lesson 15  (download your PDF copy)

 Those words bring anxiety to the hearer nearly every time.  Across the board, young and old, rich and poor, whomever you are, you have probably heard those words and probably have thought in your heart -- Oh no! What now?  What have I done? What's wrong?

Don't fret, this is good news!  This is going to uplift you, put a smile on your face and a spring in your step.  You may even need to dust off your dancing shoes :)

There's a lot of teaching (let's call it propaganda) about getting your thoughts right so that you can say right things --  out with the negative and have only a positive attitude.  Just speak out the good that you want and see it show up in your life.   No one likes a pessimistic attitude any way, right?

As I was having my quiet time, I asked the Lord about this lesson.  And he spoke to me of the Psalms.  Have you read Psalms lately?  I would say that the book of Psalms is my most favorite book of the entire Bible.  Whatever my own personal need, large or small, or if I'm praying for some one specifically, I go to Psalms.  So, the Lord reminded me of something important to him .. very important for us who are true Christians to remember, to consider, and to do often...it is to PRAISE God

Praise is different than worship.  In the churchy society today, it's all been polluted, exploited for monetary gain, perverted by self-serving people, and just plain ruined.  We can't know what praising the Lord is by what goes on on Sundays or "worship" concerts.  We talked in the previous lesson about checking everything out with the written word of God, the Bible, and making sure that what we are doing is in accordance to the standards set forth by God -- not man.

Let's go ahead and jump right into some research:

DEFINE:

• Praise
• Worship
• Talk
• Idol
• Propaganda
• Conversation
• Positive
• Negative

LOOK UP:

• Deuteronomy 6:7
• Psalm 77:12
• Psalm 105:2
• Psalm 119:27
• Philippians 1:27
• Philemon 1:6
• Ephesians 4:29 

Did you know that the words positive and negative are not found in the Bible?

According to God's word, what should we be talking about?

God is not about positive and negative conversation.  He is a holy God -- not positive.  He is a just God -- not negative.

The subtlety of this deception is that it has brought with it the eastern pagan practice of yin and yang, feng-shui, Buddism and Daoism/Taoism.  God is GOD - not the force of good verses evil.  Here again, we find the church falling into the practices of the pagans, and a host of false prophets and false teachers twisting the Holy Scriptures to cause people to stumble and fall away from God.  

Remember the Exodus? The Lord God delivered the children of Israel out of the hand and land of the Egyptians to keep his covenant with Abraham -- that God would be their God and they would be his people.  God couldn't have them following the ways of the Egyptians anymore.  The children of Israel had been in bondage to the Egyptians for over 400 years because of their hardness of heart and rebellion; and this bondage was the punishment for that rebellion. (Exodus 12:40-41)  After  Joseph had died (Abraham's great-grandson) the king of Egypt didn't know the God of Abraham and this pharoah grew more afraid of the Hebrews because the Lord had kept them and increased them even in their bondage. 

Yet, the generations had lived and died and gotten so engrossed in the Egyptian's way of living that the children of Israel (aka the Hebrews)  no longer knew HOW to walk with God.  So as we read through the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy, we learn how God got that ungodly, pagan, heathen way of life out of his people and showed them the right way to live before Him.  This section of scripture is not about a bunch of rules and regulations as much as it is about uprooting the evil out of their day to day living and learning HOW to walk with God with their whole heart.  

You see, the scriptures are written for our learning -- for today.  Can you see how the church looks like the children of Israel during the time of Moses?  They were engrossed in pagan practices, enticed by the lure of their ceremonies and culture, and not even thinking that there was anything wrong with what they were doing.  

I know, I know, that's Old Testament and we are New Testament Christians.  What does this have to do with us?  Remember II Timothy 3:16-17?  All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 

That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. 

I believe that we are again in a time like that of the Exodus.  God is about to mightily deliver his children out of the hand of the fouler, out of the evil of Egypt, out of the corruption of this world to a place that Jesus is preparing for us.

The difference is that an entire people won't be delivered, only those who are watching and praying for their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ the precious Lamb of God will be caught away in a twinkling of an eye.   

For that reason, the Lord brings our attention to himself.  (that's where we should be looking always, anyway)  And as we read in Psalms, we must remember and TALK about the mighty works of God all the day long.  This is our upright conversation.  Look at what God hath done!!

In Psalm 107, we find recounted the mighty deliverance of the children of Israel out of the hand of Egypt.  Line by line, it is written.

For the conclusion of this lesson, let us follow that example of PRAISING God for his mighty deliverance in our own life.  

Write your own Psalm of Praise unto the Lord God using Psalm 107 as a template.  Set aside time to really put thought into your Psalm of Praise -- Giving God ALL the glory -- great things he hath done!  

• What was your life before you met Jesus Christ as your Saviour?
• What happened that time you did that stupid and rebellious thing and called upon the Lord to save you?
• What happened when you repented and sought the face of God?
• How are you learning to fear God and not man?
• How did the Lord comfort you?
• How did he heal you?
• Recount how he restored your soul, and strengthened you

Present your Psalm of Praise unto the LORD -- a sacrifice of joy because He is your God and you are his people -- grafted in by the redemptive work of his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ.  AMEN!! and HALLELUJAH.

*** Do you know God like this? ***  If you died tonight, where would you go? (hell is the most horrible place created for the devil and his angels.)  And so, anyone who does not fear God, and know Jesus as their Lord and Saviour will go to hell.

 Would you like to know the God of ALL comfort as your God?  In the time of Exodus, the Lord made a provision for any one who was not Hebrew to be delivered out of evil Egypt. (Because he is merciful like that)  They just had to go to a home of the Hebrews where the blood of the lamb had been placed on the doorposts. And they would be saved out of Egypt and out of the hand of the angel of death.

The things of the Old Testament are shadows and examples for today.  Jesus is the only way to the Father God in heaven.  Jesus Christ is the precious Lamb of God who shed his own blood to pay the price for our sin and reconciled us back to the Father.  You, too, can be saved out of the wickedness of this world and the bondage of sin by turning away from your own way of doing things and giving your life to God -- to follow him and obey him.  

This is a life changing decision!  Now you, too, have a Psalm of Praise unto the LORD!

I'd love to pray for you and help you anyway I can.  Leave me a comment or email me.