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Day 2 Psalm 103 Devotional

By September 27, 2016October 6th, 2016Daily Devotional

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Pray:

Ask God to orient or reorient you to Himself. Confess any known sin. Thank Him for His forgiveness. Be still and reflect on Jesus and His sacrifice for you. Ask the Holy Spirit to open your heart and mind to God’s Word.  Pray for others in your life that they, too, would know and love God today.

Read:

Psalm 103:6-8

“The LORD works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed. He made known His ways to Moses, His deeds to the people of Israel: the LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.”

Understand:

Here David focuses on the attributes of the Lord’s character:

Righteousness: The state of being just or morally pure. It’s the very nature of God by virtue of His being; He does that which is right or in accordance with His nature, will, and law. God makes everything come out right or just.

Justice: A term used for what is right or “as it should be.” Justice flows out of His holiness. Justice and righteousness are often used synonymously in the Bible.

Compassionate & Gracious: The Lord is merciful, favorable; not punishing as is often deserved, implying a forgiving relationship. God is sheer mercy and grace.

Slow to anger: Patient, long-suffering before getting angry; not easily angered.

Abounding in Love: Rich in love; overflowing.

David recalls these attributes by thinking back to how God moved in the lives of Moses and the Israelites; how He graciously opened up His plan to them.

David praised God for His Kingship over Israel. He remembers what God has done by reflecting on His attributes. David reminds himself that God’s rule is characterized by righteousness; the Lord alone is the one who rights wrongs. God has done this by providing salvation and justice; David knows that it is the Lord who delivers us from evil and oppression.

Apply:

Guilt and shame can sometimes keep us from calling out to God. We can move away from guilt by moving towards God-that’s what we see David doing as he reflects on the attributes of God. Instead of focusing on his failures, David is moved to focus on God’s greatness.

Take a moment and reflect on God’s attributes listed above; think about how they are manifested in your life by Christ.

Personalize it by picking one attribute and reflect on how you’ve seen it play out in your life.

Is guilt from your past sins keeping you from fully embracing Christ’s work in your life? Why?

Consider the following: As a follower of Jesus, these same attributes that David speaks of have been graciously poured out into your life! God has delivered you from the guilt and shame of sin. The righteousness of God has been given to you through your faith in Jesus, and you are now justified freely by His grace. (Rom. 3:22-24)

Guilt, shame, sin… no longer have a hold of you; you’ve been set free!

Therefore, we should confess our sins to Him. We are all sinners by nature and practice.

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9

This kind of confession is not offered to gain God’s acceptance, but to remove barriers to fellowship that sin has put between you and God.

If sin is between you and God, will you confess it right now? Know that He will not push you away, but instead He will draw you close.

Thank God for the Gospel of Jesus.

Live:

(Personalize this prayer today; make it specific to the circumstances that face you.) Ask God to lead you through His Spirit as you go through your day. Ask Him to bring to mind the truth of the gospel and its implications for what you will encounter today. Tell Him “Yes” to His will and ask Him for His power and protection to live this “yes.” Ask God to create and reveal opportunities to proclaim the good news today. KEEP PRAYING THROUGHOUT YOUR DAY.

 

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