Friday, June 08, 2012

Reflections on the Psalms (Psalm 15)


"Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent?
Who may live on your holy mountain?

The one whose walk is blameless,
who does what is righteous,

who speaks the truth from their heart;
whose tongue utters no slander,
who does no wrong to a neighbor,

and casts no slur on others;
who despises a vile person

but honors those who fear the Lord;

who keeps an oath even when it hurts,

and does not change their mind;
who lends money to the poor without interest;
who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.

Whoever does these things
will never be shaken."


Men and women of strong character, thats what Gods wants us to be.  Those who dwell and walk with God are called to a higher standard, a standard of righteous living not for the sake of doing good or for a reward but because we love our God.

Lets look at the Psalm another way, take a look at the list of characteristics that the Psalmist says we should have:

Blameless, Righteous, Speaks truth, Honors others, Honest, Loyal, Trustworthy, Giving

Now think about it from a  relationship standpoint!  If you asked any guy or girl what characteristics they are looking for in a spouse these would be sure to hit the top 10.  So is it any surprise that when God asks for a relationship with us that He asks for the same qualities?  Why would we try and hold our spouse or friend to a standard like this and then wonder why God calls us to live this way.  And when questioned we waver making comments like "nobodies perfect", or "nobody could ever be like that".  I think that when we look at it from a relational standpoint we can begin to see that YES God calls us to a high standard of moral and ethical behavior, but is it really any more than what WE would want from a spouse or best friend?

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