He Remembers…

Psalm 103:9-14
“He will not always harbor his anger forever; 10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. 11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; 12 as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. 13 As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; 14 for he knows how we are formed and he remembers that we are dust.”

Isn’t it great to know that God’s anger does not last forever and that he never treats us as our sins deserve. If you are his, he has compassion on you, just like we do when our children mess up. Yes, there needs to be some discipline, but it is given out with loving measures. It is not meant to crush their spirit and neither is the discipline the Lord gives to us. Or at least in most families, this is true, I realize in some families discipline is taken too far, been there experienced it! I am talking about how most parents react and treat their children. They are kind even in their discipline towards them.

The Lord has given us his word as a guide book on how to live our lives, how to live in this world, and still stay obedient to his word. All too often though we allow sin to shine its bobbles before us and we are intrigued. Our minds start thinking about it and soon enough it drops into our hearts and we allow ourselves to be led astray. James 1:14 says it this way:
“But each one is tempted, when he is drawn away by his own lusts, and enticed. Sin is enticing. We each drawn away to sins that look good to us. My sin may not be the same sin you struggle with and vise versa. God’s word tells us that when we come to Him with true repentance He is faithful to forgive us. He not only forgives us but forgets what we did as well. He casts it as far as the East is from the West. If you have repented of your sin, and you continue to struggle under the weight of condemnation I can assure you it is not coming from God, it is coming from Satan. He wants to keep you locked into a cycle of not being able to fully enjoy Jesus. If you can keep your eyes on you, then they are not on HIM!

I think one of the most precious lines in these verses is this: “for he knows how we are formed and he remembers that we are dust.” God knows me, He knows us more intimately than we know ourselves. He knows every thought, every desire, He knows what gets us all messed up in the first place. He knows what motivates our desires and attractions to sin. He formed Adam from the dirt and dust of the ground, and we all came from there. The feelings and emotions we have in us, He gave us. But because of Adam and Eve’s sin, we are born sinners; and our Lord knows that and His compassion on us is great! Knowing we are mere dust should certainly humble of few out there. But His knowing this just brings out the compassion in him, the desire to help us find our way, at least that is how I see this verse. When we see a toddler hit someone, we do not think bully, we think oh my this little person needs to learn that he cannot hit people, it is not nice, and so we try to teach them the right way. I think that same thing can be applied to God seeing us as mere dust.

In some ways, it is a sobering thing to know that the God of the universe knows every detail of my thoughts and even intents; yet on the other side, it is so good to know that the God of the universe knows my thoughts and even the very intent of my heart and actions. I have had moments where I truly to this day do not know what motivated me to do a certain thing or act a certain way, but my Lord knows and understands. I am not left to my own devices, I don’t even have to figure a way out, when I call on him, he opens the door for me to escape. God loves us, His children more than we can even comprehend. Oh, we can have a glimpse of it in the way we love our children, but it still does not match the love God has for us.

We are to have a holy and reverent fear of God. Not the kind that puts us in a corner shaking and waiting for the hammer to fall, but the kind that realizes who He is and just how Holy He is. The kind that knows that God is Sovereign. All-knowing, and All-seeing and always present. The kind that knows that He can take down a nation just by his word. HE IS IN CONTROL! David had this to say in Psalm 139:1-13 “Where cand I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? 8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. 9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, 10 even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. 11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,” 12 even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you. 13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.”

He desires that we obey him, but even if we mess up for a little while or a longer time, He will forgive us and forget it, when we repent and turn from our sin. Sometimes we have to live with the consequences and sometimes he even takes those away, He is just that good! So, in closing, if you find yourself caught up in some sin, God already knows and He is waiting with open arms to fill you fresh and new with His spirit and love you back into a right relationship. No matter the sin, no matter how long, no matter who it was with or what it was…God can and will forgive you, do not let the enemy of your soul lie to you and convince you otherwise. Remember if his lips are moving he is lying…He is the father of lies. Always has been, always will be!

Blessings dear friends…May each of us take a close look at our lives and see what pleases the Lord and start doing those things. The hour is growing late.