Psalm 86:11-17 is instructive about God’s character and our relationship to it. David says, “teach me your way, O LORD, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart that I may fear your name” (verse 11). From this verse, we see that the ways of the LORD need to be learned, which implies the need for schooling; we need to be schooled in the things of God. The ways of God do not come naturally to us, and as this is true with all learning, they require attention, diligence, hard work, patience, repetition, and testing. Because the things of God do not come naturally, we never see natural man (i.e., those individuals who are ignorant and unschooled in His ways) “praising God or glorifying His name forever” (verse 12). Why is that? Because natural men know nothing about the ways of God (cf., 1 Corinthians 2:14). Here in this Psalm, we also learn, among other things, that God is eternally faithful, great, loving, compassionate, and gracious (verses 13-15). These are all valid reasons to sit under His tutelage. Properly, only believers in God can praise Him truly. Isaiah establishes this truth, when he writes, “[these] people I formed for myself - that they may proclaim my praise” (cf., Isaiah 43:21). Because He is the Creator and we are His creatures, we have specific responsibilities to Him, but He wants us to carry out our responsibilities from a willing heart of love – never from a sense of duty.
In Amos 6-7, we see that Amos is confronting an entire culture that had become used to economic prosperity, a life of luxury, moral corruption, and idolatry. The Israelites had all but forsaken their responsibilities before God. The Israelites had grown “complacent” (verse 1) and “proud” (verse 8). For them, their responsibilities had conveniently slipped into the realm of mere duty, thus, their duties to the Lord were basically meaningless. And if their duty – then also their love. In chapter 6, Amos warns the people in both kingdoms (i.e., Israel and Judah, verse 2) of their luxurious indulgence (verse 4-6), and he says that punishment is inevitable – “you will be among the first to go into exile” (verse 7). Twice, Amos interceded for Israel (7:3 and 7:6), and twice, God withheld His judgment. But eventually, God judged the land of Israel with His “plumb line,” – which revealed the crookedness of the people. They could not measure up.
In Romans 4:16-5:11, we see that Paul’s example of Abraham illustrates the difference between serving with a heart of love versus one of duty. Abraham’s faith becomes the standard for defining New Testament faith – “Abraham was fully persuaded that God could do everything He had promised” (verse 21), even in the face of his own failures and inabilities. Abraham willingly trusted God’s Word, and he learned that “obedience is better than sacrifice” (cf., 1 Samuel 15:22). “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God” (Romans 5:1). How important is it to know that we have peace with God? Three times in this section, Paul makes reference to our hope in the Lord (verses 2, 4, and 5), and he establishes that this hope “does not disappoint us because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, Whom He has given us” (verse 5). Our hope is more than wishful thinking. It is guaranteed by the seal of the Holy Spirit dwelling within us, and because we are now “justified by His blood” (verse 9), we are also “reconciled to God through the death of His Son” (verses 9-10). Ultimately, our peace with God is the result of His love for us – not fulfilling our sense of duty to Him.
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