Psalm 128 – Blessings of Those Who Fear the Lord:
A Song of Ascents.
“Blessed is every one who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways. 2 When you eat the labor (fruit of) of your hands, you shall be happy, and it shall be well with you. 3 Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the very heart of your house, your children like olive plants all around your table. 4 Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the Lord. 5 The Lord bless you out of Zion, and may you see the good of Jerusalem all the days of your life. 6 Yes, may you see your children’s children. Peace be upon Israel!
Hope and blessings are waiting for those who love and fear (reverence) the Lord. He is a refuge for all who seek Him, and a provider for all who trust in His holy name. When we ask the Lord for provision, He gives us the power to get wealth and to fend for ourselves, even in difficult times, (like the tribulation); this is a gift of God. The hope for us is that ‘you shall be happy and is shall be well with you.’ One way or another, God is going to show Himself strong in your life and fulfill the destiny that He has placed therein.
If a man is married, his ‘wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the very heart of your house.’ If we were to superimpose this upon the Lord and relate it to Israel (‘God’s wife’), it would read that God, as the wife of Israel, would bless her and she would become like a fruitful vine in the very heart of the Lord, His house, and His home in Zion. During the tribulation this love God has for Israel will manifest for the surviving repentant, remnant (1/3rd) and who will be welcomed into the millennial kingdom at the end of the tribulation. However, in the midst of their peril, God will be faithful to His remnant whom He loves and He will protect them in Petra in Jordan and in other places where He has designated on the earth. God is faithful so get your eschatology on!
The phrase, ‘your children are like olive plants all around your table.’ When I read this I think of God’s provision for His family, His children, His repentant few who have placed their faith and trust in Him, both on this side of the Rapture in the NT era (the Church) and on the other side where Jews and trib-saints alike have come to faith in God the hard way; but they have repented, and now they are like children, relying on the Lord for their sustenance. The other way I look at this is what the NT Church and OT saints will be doing in heaven during the tribulation; that is they will be celebrating around a very large table at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. It’s hard to fathom how you can have two separate events happening simultaneously in two different places, heaven and earth. While many trib-saints will be killed or dying all day long (like sheep to the slaughter) during the tribulation and their souls are being ushered under the altar of the Lord in the throne room of heaven; many others will be spared by God’s supernatural power. Those survivors will be given hope and peace as they place their newfound faith in God and His Word.
The Church and resurrected saints from the OT will be celebrating, eating, dancing, and enjoying the Lord in His presence at this wonderful feast where we will be reunited with long lost loved ones in their totally restored and glorified state. We will be meeting new life-long friends, and above all, we will be with Jesus, loving and embracing Him like never before and forever more. The is the heritage of those who love and fear (reverence) the Lord; the eternal blessing that comes from God to us because of His faithfulness and our obedience to Him and His Word.
God’s blessings come from the heavenly Zion, they flow toward both Jew and Gentile, to all who would repent of their wickedness and believe on the name of Jesus. During the millennial kingdom era, we will see the good of Jerusalem and those surviving trib-satins will experience God’s goodness in the land of the living during this era. Their bodies will be restored and they will live long lives; some say that there will be no death during the millennial era because the sin principle will have been put down. Seeing a man’s great grandchildren will be no problem for a person with renewed health and a lengthened posterity. For the redeemed in heaven, we will see generations of our believing family members, even those we never knew in this life. All of heaven and earth will be permeated with a global peace, a heavenly peace, a Christ-centered peace that will be as real as it is permanent because it’s brought to us by the promise of the Prince of Peace and the power of His Word, the Holy Bible.
Everything I have stated in this blog (and all of these blogs) are based on the truth of God’s Word, our living road map in this life. I am not just making this up or creating doctrines that cannot be supported by God’s Word, the Holy Bible.
As the Gideon’s worded it, ‘The Bible contains the mind of God , the state of man, the way of salvation, the doom of sinners, and the happiness of believers. Its doctrines are holy, its precepts are binding, its histories are true, and its decisions are immutable. Read it to be wise, believe it to be safe, and practice it to be holy. It contains light to direct you, food to sustain you, and comfort to cheer you. It is the traveler’s map, the pilgrim’s staff, the pilot’s compass, the soldier’s sword, and the Christian’s charter. Here Paradise is restored, Heaven opened, and the gates of hell disclosed. Christ is the grand subject, our good the design, and the glory of God its end. It should fill the memory, rule the heart, and guide the feet. Read it slowly, frequently, and prayerfully. It is a mine of wealth, a paradise of glory, and a river of pleasure, It is given you in life, will be opened at the judgment, and be remembered forever, It involves the highest responsibility, will reward the greatest labor, and will condemn all who trifle with its sacred contents.”
If you have a Bible, you need to be reading it everyday and asking the Lord to guide you not only where to read it, but to discern what He is saying to you at that moment. I have seen video coverage of the underground Church in China and other parts of the 10/40 window where our precious brothers and sisters in Christ are given Bibles from missionaries and other saints who risked their lives to get them to them. They grasp at them, kiss them, and cry because they have a Bible. If they are caught by the powers that be who oppress them, it can cost them their life, and often times it does. When I think of how to many believes in America can read God’s Word at their leisure, yet many don’t read it for whatever reasons. I challenge you to consider God’s Word and what it is that He is saying to you in these last of the last days and moments of the Church age. We’re almost home, keep on keeping on, read the Word, pray in the Spirit, and don’t give up or lose faith in what you know to be true about the promise of heaven and what God’s Word says about our eternity with Him in glory. Jesus is coming very soon.
Maranatha!
Encouragemen is a blog written by Pastor Rob Lee, recently relocated to Northern Missouri. He lives with his wife of 33-years, near their three adult children, their spouses, and children (their grandchildren). Pastor Rob is an Ordained Assemblies of God minister, a former Lead Pastor (25 years), police chaplain, and community advocate. He continues to serve, consult, and disciple men of God, including those who are in the ministry.
Encourage Men 