[Ohio-Communities-of-Faith] DONNIE DAILY GEMS FOR TUESDAY JUNE 14

[Donnie Parrett]

DONNIE DAILY GEMS FOR TUESDAY JUNE 14

WORD OF WISDOM

Fear creates mountains. Faith removes them.

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DAILY DEVOTION

Faithful to Stand


I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall
judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; Preach the
word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all
longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure
sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves
teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the
truth, and shall be turned unto fables.
2 Timothy 4:1-4

Speaking the truth has never been especially popular. The prophets God sent
to His people were often rejected and sometimes even killed. History is
filled with examples of Christians who were persecuted or martyred for their
faithful witness. But opposition, threats, and danger are not meant to stop
us. These should come as no surprise because Paul warned Timothy of this
response almost two thousand years ago. So while those of us in America have
enjoyed and benefited from a great measure of religious freedom, we
recognize that this is not guaranteed. No matter how unpopular the truth
becomes, we must continue to speak, share, teach, and preach what God says.
The path of least resistance may make us more popular in the short run, but
it will not please God or produce lasting results. We are not called to be
famous or well thought of. In fact, if we are popular with the world, we are
probably doing something wrong. Jesus said, "Woe unto you, when all men
shall speak well of you! For so did their fathers to the false prophets"
(Luke 6:26). We are called to faithfully and consistently declare the truth.
This command does not change with the seasons or with the response of
others. It is not dependent on public opinion or what the world views as
success. One day we will stand before God to give an account of our service
to Him, and He is the only one whose approval we should seek.
The more ungodly our society becomes, the more important it is for us to
firmly stand for the truth.

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DAILY BIBLE READING

Psalm 51-55 New King James Version
A Prayer of Repentance
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David when Nathan the prophet went to him,
after he had gone in to Bathsheba.
51 Have mercy upon me, O God,
According to Your lovingkindness;
According to the multitude of Your tender mercies,
Blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
And cleanse me from my sin.

3 For I acknowledge my transgressions,
And my sin is always before me.
4 Against You, You only, have I sinned,
And done this evil in Your sight-
That You may be found just [a]when You speak,
And blameless when You judge.

5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
And in sin my mother conceived me.
6 Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts,
And in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom.

7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
8 Make me hear joy and gladness,
That the bones You have broken may rejoice.
9 Hide Your face from my sins,
And blot out all my iniquities.

10 Create in me a clean heart, O God,
And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
11 Do not cast me away from Your presence,
And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.

12 Restore to me the joy of Your salvation,
And uphold me by Your generous Spirit.
13 Then I will teach transgressors Your ways,
And sinners shall be converted to You.

14 Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God,
The God of my salvation,
And my tongue shall sing aloud of Your righteousness.
15 O Lord, open my lips,
And my mouth shall show forth Your praise.
16 For You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it;
You do not delight in burnt offering.
17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit,
A broken and a contrite heart-
These, O God, You will not despise.

18 Do good in Your good pleasure to Zion;
Build the walls of Jerusalem.
19 Then You shall be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness,
With burnt offering and whole burnt offering;
Then they shall offer bulls on Your altar.

The End of the Wicked and the Peace of the Godly
To the Chief Musician. A [b]Contemplation of David when Doeg the Edomite
went and told Saul, and said to him, "David has gone to the house of
Ahimelech."
52 Why do you boast in evil, O mighty man?
The goodness of God endures continually.
2 Your tongue devises destruction,
Like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.
3 You love evil more than good,
Lying rather than speaking righteousness. Selah
4 You love all devouring words,
You deceitful tongue.

5 God shall likewise destroy you forever;
He shall take you away, and pluck you out of your dwelling place,
And uproot you from the land of the living. Selah
6 The righteous also shall see and fear,
And shall laugh at him, saying,
7 "Here is the man who did not make God his strength,
But trusted in the abundance of his riches,
And strengthened himself in his [c]wickedness."

8 But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God;
I trust in the mercy of God forever and ever.
9 I will praise You forever,
Because You have done it;
And in the presence of Your saints
I will wait on Your name, for it [d]is good.

Folly of the Godless, and the Restoration of Israel
To the Chief Musician. Set to "Mahalath." A [e]Contemplation of David.
53 The fool has said in his heart,
"There is no God."
They are corrupt, and have done abominable iniquity;
There is none who does good.

2 God looks down from heaven upon the children of men,
To see if there are any who understand, who seek God.
3 Every one of them has turned aside;
They have together become corrupt;
There is none who does good,
No, not one.

4 Have the workers of iniquity no knowledge,
Who eat up my people as they eat bread,
And do not call upon God?
5 There they are in great fear
Where no fear was,
For God has scattered the bones of him who encamps against you;
You have put them to shame,
Because God has despised them.

6 Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion!
When God brings back [f]the captivity of His people,
Let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad.

Answered Prayer for Deliverance from Adversaries
To the Chief Musician. With [g]stringed instruments. A [h]Contemplation of
David when the Ziphites went and said to Saul, "Is David not hiding with
us?"
54 Save me, O God, by Your name,
And vindicate me by Your strength.
2 Hear my prayer, O God;
Give ear to the words of my mouth.
3 For strangers have risen up against me,
And oppressors have sought after my life;
They have not set God before them. Selah

4 Behold, God is my helper;
The Lord is with those who [i]uphold my life.
5 He will repay my enemies for their evil.
[j]Cut them off in Your [k]truth.

6 I will freely sacrifice to You;
I will praise Your name, O Lord, for it is good.
7 For He has delivered me out of all trouble;
And my eye has seen its desire upon my enemies.

Trust in God Concerning the Treachery of Friends
To the Chief Musician. With [l]stringed instruments. A [m]Contemplation of
David.
55 Give ear to my prayer, O God,
And do not hide Yourself from my supplication.
2 Attend to me, and hear me;
I am[n] restless in my complaint, and moan noisily,
3 Because of the voice of the enemy,
Because of the oppression of the wicked;
For they bring down trouble upon me,
And in wrath they hate me.

4 My heart is severely pained within me,
And the terrors of death have fallen upon me.
5 Fearfulness and trembling have come upon me,
And horror has overwhelmed me.
6 So I said, "Oh, that I had wings like a dove!
I would fly away and be at rest.
7 Indeed, I would wander far off,
And remain in the wilderness. Selah
8 I would hasten my escape
>From the windy storm and tempest."

9 Destroy, O Lord, and divide their [o]tongues,
For I have seen violence and strife in the city.
10 Day and night they go around it on its walls;
Iniquity and trouble are also in the midst of it.
11 Destruction is in its midst;
Oppression and deceit do not depart from its streets.

12 For it is not an enemy who reproaches me;
Then I could bear it.
Nor is it one who hates me who has exalted himself against me;
Then I could hide from him.
13 But it was you, a man my equal,
My companion and my acquaintance.
14 We took sweet counsel together,
And walked to the house of God in the throng.

15 Let death seize them;
Let them go down alive into [p]hell,
For wickedness is in their dwellings and among them.

16 As for me, I will call upon God,
And the Lord shall save me.
17 Evening and morning and at noon
I will pray, and cry aloud,
And He shall hear my voice.
18 He has redeemed my soul in peace from the battle that was against me,
For there were many against me.
19 God will hear, and afflict them,
Even He who abides from of old. Selah
Because they do not change,
Therefore they do not fear God.

20 He has put forth his hands against those who were at peace with him;
He has broken his [q]covenant.
21 The words of his mouth were smoother than butter,
But war was in his heart;
His words were softer than oil,
Yet they were drawn swords.

22 Cast your burden on the Lord,
And He shall sustain you;
He shall never permit the righteous to be [r]moved.

23 But You, O God, shall bring them down to the pit of destruction;
Bloodthirsty and deceitful men shall not live out half their days;
But I will trust in You.

Footnotes
Psalm 51:4 LXX, Tg., Vg. in Your words
Psalm 52:1 Heb. Maschil
Psalm 52:7 Lit. desire, in evil sense
Psalm 52:9 Or has a good reputation
Psalm 53:1 Heb. Maschil
Psalm 53:6 Or His captive people
Psalm 54:1 Heb. neginoth
Psalm 54:1 Heb. Maschil
Psalm 54:4 sustain my soul
Psalm 54:5 Destroy them
Psalm 54:5 Or faithfulness
Psalm 55:1 Heb. neginoth
Psalm 55:1 Heb. Maschil
Psalm 55:2 wander
Psalm 55:9 speech, their counsel
Psalm 55:15 Or Sheol
Psalm 55:20 treaty
Psalm 55:22 shaken