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| Graphic from Good Morning Girls |
It's Thursday, and time for Ellen's A to Z Bible Verse Challenge over at The Happy Wonderer. I think it's a wonderful idea to help us stay our hearts and minds on God and His Word during these days. Today we are looking for words beginning with the letter D.
I picked the word Deliver. This is such a meaningful word. If we have trusted Christ as Savior, He has delivered us from our former life and given us a brand new life. (And if we don't yet know Him, He is ready to do that for us if we will turn to Him and ask.)
"[He] hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son." (Colossians 1:13)
The word "delivered" in the above verse is from the Greek verb rhuomai, meaning "to rescue from".
Our English word means just about the same:
"For Thou hast delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling. I will walk before the LORD in the land of the living." (Psalm 116:8-9)
When I worked on a study of Psalms, I wrote this simple prayer in response to these verses:
"Lord, I am so thankful for Your bountiful dealings with me. In Your grace and mercy, You have inclined Your ear to me and helped me when I called upon You. I thank and praise You for loosing my bonds and delivering my soul from death. I pray that You will help me to faithfully walk with You every day of this life, in Jesus' name, Amen."
"The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished." (2 Peter 2:9)
"The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles ... Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivereth him out of them all." (Psalm 34:17, 19)
"And call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me." (Psalm 50:15)
How true I have found this to be! When I call upon God in times of trouble, He rescues me in some way. It may not always be the way I am hoping for, but He does come to my rescue. And then I can share testimony of His faithfulness and goodness to me, glorifying Him!
God told Jeremiah,
" Be not afraid of their faces; for I am with thee, to deliver thee, saith the LORD ... And they shall fight against thee, but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee." (Jeremiah 1:8, 19)
And remember what David said as he faced Goliath?
"David said moreover, the LORD that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, He will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said unto David, Go, and the LORD be with thee." (1 Samuel 17:37)
And how about Daniel's three friends who would not bow down to the image? They said,
"If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us out of thy hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up." (Daniel 3:17-18)
They understood that it might not be God's plan to deliver them. But they had no doubt at all that He was able to deliver them, and they confidently acted on that trust.
Oh, there is so much more in God's Word concerning deliverance. I have merely scratched the surface. In my study of Mardi Collier's wonderful book What Do I Know About My God? I did a section titled "My God Delivers" and found, without even looking very hard, over 25 Bible passages that allude to God's deliverance of His people. (If you have never read this book, it is completely Bible-centered and helps you to get to know your God as you may never have known Him before. You will end up with a notebook full of truth about Him. I can't recommend it highly enough.)
"But the salvation of the righteous is of the LORD; He is their strength in the time of trouble. And the LORD shall help them, and deliver them: He shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them, because they trust in Him."
What a blessing for God's children to keep in mind today!
(Wouldn't you like to read more, or join in with Ellen's Bible verse challenge? Be sure to head over to The Happy Wonderer to do so!)
Certainly a word to remember this year, Mrs T. Thanks for sharing some encouragement today.
ReplyDeleteMrs. T! What a wonderful post on deliver/deliverance. Thanks for all the in depth study you did and shared with us. I'll have to check out that book. Studying and meditating on God's Word is so important! Blessings!
ReplyDeleteWonderful, comforting Scriptures. I have always found it to be true...The Lord does deliver us time and time again.
ReplyDeleteOh, what a wonderful word, "deliver"! Such hope and promise in that one word. I am thankful for God's deliverance of our souls from death, our lives from sin, and our bodies and minds from captivity and fear. God is our Great Deliverer. We are so blessed to be His children. Thank you for this wonderful reminder today. We need to remember this.
ReplyDeleteAs Vee and Pamela have said..He is our Great Deliverer, time and time again...That book sounds like a wonderful study.
ReplyDeleteBlessings, Linda
Such beautiful scriptures and truths you've shared Sarah. They touched my heart, and blessed me. He is our Deliver and supplier of every need, no matter the situation! Many blessings to you dear friend :)
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