Ways and Acts

Psalm 103:7 "He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel." Ways and Acts When I think of Psalm 103, I remember a small service some of us had at a chapel at the bottom of the Grand Canyon a few years ago. There, we took a look at Psalm 103, and the words seemed to come alive as we viewed the great works of the Lord around us. This psalm reminds us of all the wonderful things God has done and is doing in our lives. Let's take a look at verse 7. Notice that the LORD made known His "ways" to Moses and his "acts" to the children of Israel. How did Moses know the "ways" of the LORD? Did he just have a feeling one day of what God must be like? Did he determine God's character by watching nature? No, of course not! God directly communicated to Moses His "ways" through the Ten Commandments. Moses never had to wonder what the LORD was like or what He expected. Today, we can still be confident of God's ways because He has directly communicated with us as well. His Word tells us clearly what He is like and what He expects of us. Don't fall into the popular thinking of today that "if it feels right to you, it's OK" or "how you believe is good for you, but it doesn't mean it's for everybody." We have been given objective truth about God and living; God's ways are clear and constant even if the winds of popular opinion are blowing the other way. Base your life upon what God's Word says, not upon how you feel. Now notice that the Lord's "acts" were made known unto the children of Israel. How did they know what God's "acts" were? Did they just know about the acts of God from books they had read? No, they knew of the "acts" of the LORD because they saw them firsthand! Yes-brace yourself-they knew the acts of God from their experience. I know that "experience" in our circles is sometimes belittled, but experience also plays an important role in the Christian life. Both the objectivity of the Word of God and our own personal experience are important-in that order. We try to rationalize away the absence of God's "acts" in our churches. We say that we believe that God can send revival, but because of the apostasy of our day and age, we cannot expect to see anything like that happen. We give mental assent to truths from the Bible, but we do not strive to experience those truths for ourselves. This is unbelief! Yes, experience without the Word of God has no authority. But the Word of God in our lives without experiencing its truth is also incomplete. David ends this wonderful psalm with exhortations, first to the angels to bless the LORD (v.20-21), and then to His whole creation to bless the LORD (v.22). But lastly, David exhorts himself to bless the LORD. Don't just be satisfied to know the Lord's ways through history-experience them for yourself, so you can bless Him for His works in your own life! Prayer Requests: - Revival services tonight in Reynoldsburg, OH; Menomonee Falls, WI; and Three Springs, PA Check for revival services and events in your area on our website: billriceranch.org

Bill Rice Ranch 627 Bill Rice Ranch Road Murfreesboro TN 37128