591-Do Not Rely on Man, But Rely on Him#
(JP Text Group - Shalom Compilation)
Peace, dear family, welcome to your arrival. Today is Sunday, and we will look at God's word together.
The topic of the sharing is: Do Not Rely on Man, But Rely on Him.
Psalm 146:1-10:
1 Praise the Lord! O my soul, praise the Lord! 2 I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. 3 Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, who cannot save. 4 When their spirit departs, they return to the ground; on that very day their plans come to nothing. 5 Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord their God.
6 He is the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them—he remains faithful forever. 7 He upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets prisoners free; 8 the Lord gives sight to the blind; the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous. 9 The Lord watches over the foreigner and sustains the fatherless and the widow, but he frustrates the ways of the wicked. 10 The Lord reigns forever! Your God, O Zion, for all generations! Praise the Lord!
Let us pray together first.
Heavenly Father, we thank and praise You. Thank You for starting a new week for us and giving us Your word, allowing us to gain strength and provision from Your word. When we receive provision, we do not rely on man; we are willing to experience the power of Your word in our lives. Through Your word, let us once again increase our faith and wisdom, reconnect with our God, and receive revelations from You. In the name of the Lord Jesus, we pray, Amen.
Including this one, there are a total of five psalms known as the Hallelujah Psalms. They are named so because each one begins and ends with Hallelujah, which means praise the Lord. The authors of these five psalms are unknown, but all five end with such words of praise. Here it is mentioned that the Lord is a Creator who is willing to help people, who is faithful forever and does not change, who upholds the cause of the oppressed, and provides food for the hungry, etc. Such a Lord is worthy of our praise.
Verses 1-2: 1 Praise the Lord! O my soul, praise the Lord! 2 I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live!
Here, the poet reflects on God's love and grace, filled with gratitude. He calls others to praise God while telling himself, "I will praise the Lord all my life!" Praising God is the heartfelt worship of believers when they receive grace; praise is also a sacrifice offered to God by believers.
Psalm 69:30-33 says:
30 I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving. 31 This will please the Lord more than an ox, more than a bull with its horns and hooves. 32 The poor will see and be glad— you who seek God, may your hearts live! 33 The Lord hears the needy and does not despise his captive people.
From this, we can see why we should praise our God. It is not because our God lacks praise that we must praise Him, but because we need this God, who is full of love and grace, willing to be gracious to us. Therefore, after receiving God's grace, we are willing to praise His name with songs. We also want to offer thanksgiving as a sacrifice to Him, calling Him great. When we do this from the heart, it pleases our God. Why? Because our God desires people to seek Him and to praise Him in their hearts.
God is willing to give us His blessings, and what He requires from people is that after receiving His grace, they can sincerely thank Him. This pleases the Lord, and this is what God delights in. It is particularly mentioned that it is better than offering an ox or a bull with horns and hooves. True heartfelt gratitude to God is what pleases Him the most.
In the Old Testament, why did the Israelites offer bulls to God? It was a thank offering. Sometimes bulls were offered as sin offerings, etc., but God delights in us relying on Him from the heart. When people rely on God, they receive grace from Him, and God is very pleased with this. In this sense, God does not delight in people offering bulls; He delights in people offering thanksgiving as a sacrifice to Him. Hallelujah. So we must not think that God enjoys various offerings and thus requires people to present them. From these scriptures, it can be seen that when people praise His name with songs and glorify Him with thanksgiving, this is what truly pleases God.
In fact, this is a relationship, just like the relationship between a father and his beloved children. When children are grateful to their father from the heart, the father is very joyful. It is not that the father only delights when the child presents him with gifts or expensive presents; this reflects a loving relationship. When we receive grace from God and are willing to offer thanks to Him, our God sees our grateful hearts and rejoices, and this relationship will become better and better.
Verse 32 says: The humble will see and be glad.
Why do the humble rejoice? Because the humble feel that they have many shortcomings and weaknesses, so when they see their shortcomings, they are willing to rely on God to gain strength from Him, and God is willing to give them strength. The humble rejoice because they receive satisfaction and provision from God. You who seek God, may your hearts live. Why do we seek God? Because God is willing to give us grace; He is happy to give good things to those who seek Him. Remember, in today's terms, this is what we call prayer.
When you pray to God, you are actually seeking God; when you come to the temple to worship Him and praise Him, you are expressing gratitude to Him. You who seek God, may your hearts live. You need to see that the Lord is the God who hears the prayers of people, Amen.
Here it is mentioned that the Lord hears the needy and does not despise the captive. In this world, the cries of the needy are often overlooked, and the captive are usually despised by others. But even such people, when they come before God to cry out, God hears their prayers and does not despise the captive. Amen.
So as children of God, we must learn to rely on God in various circumstances. Many people become discouraged, despairing, weak, and stagnant when they encounter difficulties or bad situations. In fact, when faced with such situations, remember that you have a Lord who can help you, who can hear your cries, who does not despise your current circumstances, Amen. Even when you have nothing, He will not forsake you. When you think of having such a Lord who is always with you, does it not make you fearless no matter how great the difficulties you encounter? You can turn worries into joy.
Moreover, our God is not just a spiritual support; it is not that when you speak to Him, you feel better; He truly exists. When you call upon Him, He can give you strength to save you from all evil. Amen. That is why the poet says, "I will sing praise to my God as long as I live!"
We should also do the same. As long as we have life, we will continually experience His presence and goodness, and we will constantly express gratitude from our hearts. In fact, as believers, our lives are about continually discovering the grace and help that God gives us every day, frequently expressing gratitude and praise to Him in our lives. Our lives are about continually discovering the grace God gives us and responding to it with thanksgiving. This is the purpose of our coming into the world.
It is not like the world, where we come to suffer, like cattle and horses, and then die miserably without anyone remembering us. No, it is not like that. God remembers you, remembers everything you do on earth, and He hopes that all our earthly lives are lived relying on God, which gives meaning and value.
Verses 3-4: 3 Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, who cannot save. 4 When their spirit departs, they return to the ground; on that very day their plans come to nothing.
Why does God speak so absolutely? Do not rely on princes, do not rely on man; he cannot help at all. Many people may feel unconvinced when reading this, saying, "How can a prince not help me? Sometimes my friends and family can indeed help me; how can you say they cannot help me? This statement that 'he cannot help at all' is too absolute."
Let's first look at princes. Here it is first mentioned not to rely on princes. People living on earth think that being a prince means having the greatest power, and if they want to help others, they can certainly do so. But our God emphasizes here that although a prince can wield power, his own life is very fragile. He can promise to help you today, but if his spirit departs in the next second, his power will disappear along with it. Even while he is alive, his power is quite limited and cannot help you in all matters.
For example, there are many things that human power cannot help with. When a person has a disease that even doctors cannot cure, how can power help you? When all people face terminal illnesses, no matter how great their power, they still have to face this problem.
Another issue is that he cannot supply or help you at any time and place. Even if the prince's son is far away from him at this moment, the prince cannot help him immediately. Also, the prince's heart can change at any time; what he promises you today may not count tomorrow.
Therefore, as believers on earth, do not rely on these powerful people. No matter how good their promises sound, just listen and let it be; the one you can truly rely on is our God. Because in the face of life and death, these powerful people first learn to protect their own lives, not to care about yours. So everyone should understand why the Bible tells us not to rely on princes, because they are unreliable; their power is primarily to protect themselves, not others.
Do not rely on man. Here it tells us not to rely on man. What does it mean to rely? It means to rely on people when you are truly powerless and have no way out. In fact, they still cannot help you because their abilities are limited; when their spirit departs, they return to the ground. How can you expect dust to help you? Their plans come to nothing on that very day.
Jeremiah 17:5-8:
5 This is what the Lord says: Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who draws strength from mere flesh and whose heart turns away from the Lord. 6 That person will be like a bush in the wastelands; they will not see prosperity when it comes. They will dwell in the parched places of the desert, in a salt land where no one lives. 7 But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. 8 They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.
In this passage, God tells us what the consequences of relying on man are: Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who draws strength from mere flesh and whose heart turns away from the Lord! In our lives or in this world, when we encounter problems, we either rely on God or rely on man. When a person chooses to rely on the arm of flesh, their heart will definitely turn away from God.
Are there not many examples of this around us? When they focus entirely on people, they are actually far from God. What is the characteristic of such people? When they encounter problems, they keep seeking people. Even if they go to find a pastor, they place all their hopes on the pastor.
If this pastor is not good, they will switch to another pastor; if this pastor has been a believer for too short a time and cannot help them, they will look for someone who has been a believer longer; or they will look around for powerful people to help them through this difficulty; if all else fails, they might even look for other gods. This is all called relying on the arm of flesh.
You will find that they all have a common characteristic: they do not rely on the true God but seek everyone or every method except God. And our Lord says of such people, "They are cursed." Why? Because they will be like a bush in the wastelands, they will not see prosperity when it comes.
Have you ever thought about it? When you constantly rely on people, do you not need to offer gifts to that person first for them to help you wholeheartedly? Very few people are willing to do that. Many times, people place all their hopes on a certain person, and ultimately, when a small problem arises in the process, that person says, "I can no longer help you."
Usually, many people become increasingly disappointed in this process, just like a bush in the wasteland, they will not see prosperity. Why does the bush in the wasteland not see prosperity? Because no matter how hard it tries, the result is that it will not see prosperity due to its environment.
If you have the opportunity to visit a desert, you will understand that environment. The plants in the desert are truly miserable; no matter how hard they try to change themselves, they cannot because there is no supply in their environment. The place they live is a wasteland, dry, without water, in a salt land where no one lives; in that environment, no matter how they struggle and strive, there will be no good results.
Just like what the world tells you now: "As long as you work hard enough, you will definitely have a good life." This is also a lie. You ask how the bush in the desert can continue to grow and not worry? The answer is that no matter how hard it tries, the outcome is the same.
You say it does not try hard enough to root down? Whether it roots ten meters or twenty meters, is the result the same? Yes, it is the same; no matter how hard it tries, the outcome is the same because there is no supply in that environment. So how can it completely change this environment? Someone must completely change the environment it is in.
Verse 7 says: Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him!
Turn around, if from now on, you no longer place all your hopes on people to change your environment and circumstances, but solely look to God, then your entire environment will change.
Verse 8 says: They will be like a tree planted by the water.
Everyone must remember that it is clearly stated: they will be like a tree planted by the water. A tree cannot plant itself by the water, right? So who moved it there? The planter moved this tree to be by the water, and everything about it changed. If this tree was previously in the desert, and someone passed by, dug it up, and moved it to be by the water, it does not need to try so hard; its situation will change, right? Yes.
So, dear family, if we did not know God before, it is like being in the desert, constantly trying hard, and our environment never improves. Many people work hard for many years, and when a change occurs, they have nothing. This is the bush in the desert. What should we do? We must learn to rely on our God, let God completely change our lives, and let our supply come not from this world but from above. This is like a tree being transplanted to the riverside. When you are rooted by the riverside, you do not need to try so hard; you will find that everything will get better and better.
Later it mentions that when heat comes, you will not fear. Even if there are circumstances, as long as this supply continues, as long as there is a continuous supply of river water, you will not fear. The leaves will always be green; this can be understood as the smiles on our faces and the rest in our hearts, which can be expressed. In the face of any situation, you will not panic and feel helpless like the world; you will turn to God in prayer.
Moses led the Israelites in the wilderness and encountered many difficulties, but every time they faced difficulties, Moses turned to God in prayer, and God was able to provide them with the answers they needed and perfectly solve their problems. Although they were in the wilderness at that time, God provided them with food; every day, God would timely send manna to them, and there was water for them to drink from the rock. This is God's provision, Amen.
We should not pray, "Lord, do not let me come to a hot place, do not let various problems arise." This is unrealistic because this world has fallen, and there will definitely be many problems. But we need not fear all this because of God's provision. This is why we should rely on God. If you rely on man, he cannot even solve his own problems; how can he solve yours? In the face of disaster, those in power will run away first; how can they care about you? Human selfishness will be fully revealed.
There is a movie called "Titanic." When that ship hit the iceberg, in the face of death, those people completely disregarded morality; some would immediately rush onto the lifeboats, not caring what others said because at that moment, they wanted to survive. In such situations, relying on people, relying on those in power, is completely unreliable.
So dear family, the only one you can rely on is our God. When you encounter problems, you should call upon God; He can send people or make all things change your situation and solve all your problems, Amen. When you know that God provides continuously, you will no longer fear, and your face will always carry hope.
Later it mentions that in a year of drought, you will have no worries and will bear fruit continually. It turns out that not only will there be no worries, but you will also bear fruit continually. In what year? In a year of drought. When everyone says the environment is bad, business is hard to do, and people's hearts are treacherous, when there seems to be no way out, you actually have no worries and bear fruit continually. What is the reason for all this? Because you are a tree planted by God by the water; you are rooted by the river. Amen.
Will the river of the Holy Spirit be cut off today? Absolutely not. Therefore, you must be rooted by the river of the Holy Spirit, which is living water, always able to provide you with supply, bring you methods, make you worry-free, and enable you to bear fruit continually. When you bear fruit continually in a year of drought, you can supply many people, Amen. This is why we should not rely on princes, not rely on man, but solely rely on our God. The world does not know its own end, nor does it know what will happen in the next second; how can you dare to entrust your life to it?
Ecclesiastes 9:12: Indeed, no one knows when their hour will come. As fish are caught in a cruel net, or birds are taken in a snare, so people are trapped by evil times that fall unexpectedly upon them.
Since this is the case, why still place all your hopes on people? They do not even know when their lives will end. Just like fish do not know when they will be caught, and birds do not know when they will fall into a snare, when disaster suddenly strikes, who can save these people?
Therefore, we must often rely on God in our lives, pray about everything, and not place our hopes on people. People's abilities are limited, Amen, but our God is different; He can protect you at all times, provide for you, and lead you on the right path, Amen. In this way, even if the enemy sets traps for you, God can give you wisdom to avoid these traps.
Looking at verse 5 of this text: Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord their God!
Here it wonderfully mentions that the help is the God of Jacob. Why mention the God of Jacob? Wouldn't it be better to mention the God of Abraham? What does mentioning Jacob mean?
Because Jacob is a very unique person. The Old Testament mentions the God of Jacob a total of twenty-one times, and the New Testament mentions it six times. Why is this emphasized? It is to highlight that our God is still a reliable God for someone like Jacob, and those who rely on Him are blessed. Think about it: if you help a deceitful person who has repeatedly broken promises, would you still be willing to help him? From a human perspective, you would certainly not help him anymore; but God is not like that. The true God, even if you are deceitful like Jacob, still shows you grace. This shows the wonderful greatness of our God. Why should we thank Him all our lives? It is precisely because God is such a God. Let me tell you what kind of person Jacob was and what kind of God Jacob's God is.
Genesis 28:13-16:
13 There above it stood the Lord, and he said: “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. 14 Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. 15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” 16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.”
What is the background of this story? Isaac had two sons, one was Esau, and the other was Jacob. These two brothers were twins, born very closely together, with not much time difference. Jacob was born second and was very dissatisfied with his older brother, saying, “Why should I be called your brother just because I was born a little later, and you get to take more of the family inheritance? This is too unfair.” So he tried various methods to get more inheritance and to take back the birthright. This is a very peculiar thing.
If the two were several years apart, Jacob probably would not have argued about it. But just because they were born so closely, he thought, “If I had been born first, all this would be mine; why should it all go to you?” So he tried to obtain these blessings through his own efforts.
One day, when his brother returned from hunting, he was extremely hungry. His brother said, “Can you give me a bowl of soup?” Jacob deceived his brother with a trick, saying, “Sell me your birthright, and I will give you soup.” At that moment, his brother thought, “What does it matter? Isn’t it just a joke?” As a result, he sold his birthright.
When their father was about to die, he wanted to bless them. This blessing was crucial and would truly affect their future fortunes. Jacob again deceived his brother and took the blessing of the firstborn. It was all through deceit; he did not rely on God but relied on his own cleverness and wisdom to try to seize everything.
When his brother Esau learned of this, he was very angry and determined to say, “Once my father dies, I will kill my brother Jacob. This guy is too despicable; he used so many tricks to steal all my blessings.” Have you ever thought that Jacob brought this upon himself? Yes, from our human perspective, he indeed brought it upon himself. So when he heard that his brother wanted to kill him, he ran away alone and fled to his uncle.
On the way, because he had no place to sleep, he used a stone as a pillow and fell asleep. In his dream, God spoke to him with these words. Logically, Jacob's circumstances at this time were all self-inflicted, and he did not call upon God. But God is a God of mercy, so at night, He spoke to Jacob, saying, “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you the land on which you are lying.”
Well, did Jacob deserve this when God spoke these words to him? Clearly, he did not deserve it. And God said, “Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring.” Have you noticed that such a promise sounds familiar? Yes, this is the covenant God made with Abraham, fulfilled in him. From a human perspective, did Jacob deserve all this? He did not deserve it; his behavior was not good at all. But what does God look at? The covenant made with man.
Why can we receive all spiritual blessings in heaven? It is not because our behavior is good; many times, our thoughts are truly deceitful like Jacob's. But what does God look at? It is the eternal blood covenant established by Jesus Christ. Because Jesus Christ shed His blood on the cross for our sins, we receive the blessings of Jesus. So God blesses you just as He did Jacob; our blessings come this way, not because of our good behavior.
God then said to Jacob, “I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” This was undoubtedly a great comfort to Jacob at that time.
These promises God also gives us today; He is with you, and wherever you go, He will bless you and will not leave you. But many times, we forget this promise and rely on people, which is very tragic. If Jacob had known these promises God gave him, would he have needed to deceive his brother and father to seize those blessings? No, he would not. It is precisely because he did not know these things that if he truly learned God's words, he would have known.
Why do I always encourage everyone to listen to the word? Because in the process of listening to the word, you can know what God wants to give you. Otherwise, if you do not know these things, you will find it hard to grasp anything in the world. Jacob said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it!” How dull of faith! Logically, when God spoke these words to Jacob, should he not have thanked God? Yes, as a destitute person, he should have thanked God for speaking such comforting words to him and remembered God's covenant.
Let’s see how Jacob responded. Genesis 28:18-22:
18 Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on top of it. 19 He called that place Bethel, though the city used to be called Luz. 20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear 21 so that I return safely to my father’s household, then the Lord will be my God 22 and this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be God’s house, and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.”
What is Jacob doing? He is bargaining with God! And this person is very repetitive. How does he say it? “If God will be with me.” Last night in the dream, God had already said, “I am with you and will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
Does Jacob believe? He uses his deceit to measure God's promise, saying, “If you will be with me.” What does this mean? It means you must first be with me and do what? Watch over me on this journey. Just do not let me encounter any accidents, do not let robbers capture or kill me.
Also, give me food to eat and clothes to wear. You must provide for my life, and let me return safely to my father’s household. Have you ever thought about why Jacob cannot return safely to his father’s household? It is because of the consequences of his own deceit! Yet he puts this as a condition before God, saying, “You must let me have food and clothing, and let me return safely to my father’s household. Under this condition, I will acknowledge you as my God.”
Isn’t this ridiculous? Can’t everyone see Jacob’s deceit? You must first ensure that I have food and clothing, that I have no worries, and that you must let me return. Although this disaster is caused by me, you must do everything possible to let me return; only when you accomplish all this will I acknowledge you as my God.
From God's perspective, does He lack a believer like Jacob? Whether you acknowledge me as your God or not, what does our God lack? But Jacob is taking himself too seriously; he says, “You must first accomplish these things, and then I will acknowledge you as my God.” Does this not resemble how many times we bargain with God? “You must heal my illness first, and then I will acknowledge you as my God; you must first turn my finances around, and then I will thank you.” Many times, believers act just like Jacob.
Verse 22: “And this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be God’s house, and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.”
Jacob immediately makes a deal with God, saying, “You must let me have food and clothing, let me return safely to my father’s household, and then I will acknowledge you as my God. After that, I promise to build a house for you, which will be God’s house. And of all that you give me, I will give you a tenth.”
This shows that Jacob is not unaware of what Abraham had said to them; he simply does not take it to heart. But now he treats this as a condition to exchange with God: “You must first guarantee that I have food and clothing, let me return safely to my father’s household, and then I can agree that you are my God, and I will build a house for you. After that, I will give you a tenth of what you give me.” Does God lack Jacob's tenth?
So now many believers are unwilling to give offerings; they think, “The money I earn with great difficulty, why should I give it to God? If I give it to you, will I not have less?” They forget one thing: all this is given by God. If he cannot see this, he is still relying on himself and on man.
Jacob is very clear about this: “Of all that you give me, I will give you a tenth.” It is all conditional, and he repeatedly bargains with God. But even so, God still shows him grace; if it were not for God's protection, his life would have long been gone.
You can read that part to know how many hardships he encountered in his life; all of them were God's interventions. If it were not for God's intervention, with his tricks, he would not have survived at all. So dear family, this is what we mean by relying on the God of Jacob. Jacob is very deceitful, but Jacob's God is full of grace and mercy; as long as you are willing to rely on Him, God is willing to help you. Look to such a God; are you not blessed?
Genesis 47:7-10:
7 Joseph brought his father Jacob in and presented him before Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. 8 Pharaoh asked Jacob, “How old are you?” 9 Jacob said to Pharaoh, “The years of my pilgrimage are a hundred and thirty. My years have been few and difficult, and they do not equal the years of the pilgrimage of my ancestors.” 10 Then Jacob blessed Pharaoh and went out from his presence.
Here we can see that in his old age, his life had changed; Jacob was able to bless others, even Pharaoh, which is quite rare. What caused this? Because of Joseph, the blessing Joseph gave Jacob was truly great. Jacob enjoyed too many blessings because of this son, and he also became willing to bless others. When Pharaoh asked Jacob, “How old are you?” he said, “I have lived a hundred and thirty years, but my days have been few and difficult.” Have you ever thought about why Jacob's days were few and difficult? It was because he had always relied on the arm of flesh! It was because he had always relied on man! If he had relied on God, his days would not have been like this. Therefore, blessed are those who look to the Lord.
Psalm 33:18-19:
18 The eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love, 19 to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.
If we learn to rely on God, God's eyes will watch over us, deliver us from various deaths, and we will not walk the path of death; even when famine comes, we can survive in famine. The fear is that people continually rely on themselves, which leads to a cycle of various troubles; that is the terrible life. Why should you rely on this God?
Verse 6 says: The Lord is the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them; he remains faithful forever.
First, He has the power; He created the heavens and the earth and everything in them—doesn't such a Lord deserve your reliance? Do you still want to choose to rely on man? Dear family, I encourage everyone to spend time and energy getting to know God, reading the Bible every day, meditating, and praying. In this way, you will have the most powerful helper.
What is most important? This God remains faithful forever. What does it mean to remain faithful? He will not break His promises; He is a covenant-keeping God. So why must you understand the cross of Jesus Christ? Because that is the covenant between us and God. He does not break His promises; He will surely show mercy and keep this covenant forever. Shouldn't we rely on Him?
Isaiah 41:11-13:
11 All who rage against you will surely be ashamed and disgraced; those who oppose you will be as nothing and perish. 12 Though you search for your enemies, you will not find them. Those who wage war against you will be as nothing at all. 13 For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you: Do not fear; I will help you.
I also want to share this word with everyone. God says to you today: "Do not fear; I will help you." So do not care about those around you who are angry with you, those who frighten you, and those who bring you shame; they will no longer have the opportunity to contend with you. Because God will intervene, those who contend with you will not be found. Because God will lift you up, those who contend with you are not your opponents. Those who once fought against you will ultimately become nothing because God will lift you up; He will give you wisdom, faith, and enable you to completely overcome your enemies. Amen.
So what should we do? Focus on God, spend our time meditating on God's words, and you will have such power. When God takes hold of your hand, what do you have to fear? If you leave God's words, you will fear and be at a loss; you will not be able to overcome your enemies, Amen. Isn't it better to let God intervene? Do not fear; our Lord will help you.
Verses 7-9 of this text:
7 He upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets prisoners free; 8 the Lord gives sight to the blind; the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous. 9 The Lord watches over the foreigner and sustains the fatherless and the widow, but he frustrates the ways of the wicked.
As we approach the end times, injustices will increase, and more people will be wronged, but God will uphold the cause of the oppressed. So when you encounter unfair or unjust situations, what should you do? Call upon God; He will uphold your cause, Amen. We must know that the God who discerns hearts will uphold your cause, bringing great comfort to all who are wronged. No matter what has you bound in life, when you come before God's word, you will be set free.
The Lord gives sight to the blind; the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down, Amen. As long as you are willing to rely on this Lord, He is willing to reach out to help you. No matter how deceitful a person has been in the past or how despised they may be, if you are willing to seek God, He can bless you and change everything about you. Amen. Why do people act deceitfully in this world? Isn’t it just to gain a little more benefit? When you come before God, He says, “I will give to you; you do not need to live like that.” People will naturally change.
The Lord loves the righteous. What is a righteous person? It is someone who is justified by faith. Acknowledge that you have nothing, acknowledge that you can do nothing, and believe in the redemptive grace accomplished by Jesus on the cross, allowing you to receive God's grace. God says, “You are the righteous; I will bless you, and I delight in you.”
Whether the world likes you or not is of no importance; it is enough that God likes you. Our God protects the foreigner, sustains the fatherless and the widow—who are these people? They are the helpless.
So when you feel that no one in this world seems to understand you, that no one pays attention to you, God is your help, Amen. He can frustrate the ways of the wicked. Let God open the way before you; you just need to walk the path of truth and the path of the righteous.
Verse 10: 10 The Lord reigns forever! Your God, O Zion, for all generations! Praise the Lord!
Why do we praise the Lord who reigns? He reigns for a lifetime; we praise Him. He reigns forever; we praise Him. It turns out that God’s reign is not to dominate or control the people, but to continuously supply them with His power, love, and grace. Such a king is worthy of our praise, Amen; He is different from the kings of this world.
Matthew 20:25-28:
25 Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 26 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
This is our Lord Jesus; He is different from the kings of this world. The kings of this world govern the people and exercise authority over them; this is a fact. Do not be surprised by anything; no matter how strange things get, you should know that God has already told us in His word. Where is your way out? Where is your hope? It is in the Lord Jesus.
However, among our brothers and sisters, it is not like this; the kingdom of God is also different from the kingdoms of this world. In the kingdom of God, whoever wants to be great must serve everyone; whoever wants to be first must be a servant to all. Everyone must remember this principle: one day when we reach the kingdom of heaven, Jesus will be the king, but He will still serve us.
If you want to be first or great in the church, then serve and help everyone; this is what Jesus came to do on earth. Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve. Do you like such a king? This king hopes that you will rely on Him; He is willing to help you. Thank the Lord; may each of my brothers and sisters allow Jesus to continue being our king. Let us rely on Him, call upon Him, and listen to His guidance in everything.
Let us pray together.
Heavenly Father, we thank and praise You. Thank You for giving us such words today, reminding us not to rely on man but to rely on our Lord. Because man is unreliable and limited in ability; their lives are limited. We are willing to rely on our God because our God is the God who created heaven and earth; He remains faithful forever, and He remembers the covenant He made with us. We believe that in our lives, no matter what we encounter, when we call upon Him, God will listen and show us grace.
A new week has begun, and I believe that God is with me this week; the Holy Spirit will help me and lead me on the path ahead. I am willing to rely on Him in everything and experience His power and guidance in my life. All glory be to our Father in heaven. In the name of the Lord Jesus, we pray, Amen.