PRAISE HIM WITH CLEAN HANDS

Psalms 103:20-22 Bless the LORD, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word. (21) Bless ye the Lord, all ye his hosts; ye ministers of his, that do his pleasure. (22) Bless the Lord, all his works in all places of his dominion: bless the Lord, O my soul.

Is someone ‘good’ just because they believe in the virtue of goodness? Is someone clean just because they believe cleanliness is right? Is someone honest just because they acquiesce that honesty is a good thing? Is someone a Christian just because he attends a church?

What would we think of a child who praises his parents up and down, claims to acknowledge and agree with their wisdom in decision-making, confesses desire to emulate them and yet, in his daily behavior, does everything contrary to their bidding. That child would certainly be viewed as a hypocrite and a liar wouldn’t he?

It is a sad thing today that while praising their Father in Heaven, God’s children everywhere rob, lie, kill; rely on the arm of flesh rather than that of God; worship God that they fashioned according to their own ways, and are more attentive to the traditions of man than to the commandment of the God almighty that they claim created them (Matthew 15:3). By our example, we, who are supposed to be the custodians of the faith imparted to us, have sadly been the biggest enemies of its propagation. The apostle Paul severely rebuked the Roman church for such behavior, and told then that the name of God was blasphemed among the unbelievers because of their hypocritical sample (Romans 2:17-24).

That is why Jesus Christ told us that the heart of the law of God was justice and mercy (Matthew 23:23); obedience not sacrifice (1 Samuel 15:22); and that if we have ought against our ‘brother’, He would rather that we leave aside our sacrificial service to Him and reconcile with him first (Matthew 5:23-24).

Let us now seriously and honestly ponder these things. Let us raise unto God praises cleaned from malice and envy; let us offer a service purified from our owns works of disobedience; let us match our walk with our talk.

Romans 2:13 For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.