LIVING WORD DEVOTIONAL
By Pastor Mensa Otabil
Sunday 7th November 2021
THE LORD SURROUNDS ME WITH FAVOUR
Scripture Reading: Psalm 5
For You, O Lord, will bless the righteous; With favor You will surround him as with a shield. Psalm 5:12
We conclude our study of Psalm 5 on a note of trust in God’s faithfulness towards the righteous. While the Lord punishes the wicked for their wickedness, He shows favour to the righteous. He brings deserved punishment upon the one and shows His favour to the other.
1. The Lord blesses the righteous. The righteous are those whose ways please the Lord. In the New Testament, it does not imply those who are made perfect by their own effort. Rather, the righteous are those who rely on God mercy for the forgiveness of their sins and trust in Christ alone for their righteousness.
God blesses the righteous because of Christ. Through the suffering, death and resurrection of Christ, we have access to God’s blessings.
2. The Lord favours the righteous. He shows kindness to those who have accepted His offer of salvation through the Lord Jesus.
God’s favour is like a shield around us. In the olden days, when shields were used in battle, many battle formations included the shield. Armies had formations where shields were joined together so that a troop could hide under the covering of the shields. In that way, though arrows would rain around them, they would have security under the shield. That is how God covers us with His favour.
The Lord uses His favour as a shield that covers us. Under His favour, no weapon of the enemy will touch us or harm us.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, you bless the righteous with your presence. Let your favour surround me on all sides as a shield. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
