Vazquez Counseling

Tonight, in my time of devotion, I meditated on these two passages of Scripture:

“Search me, O God, and know my heart;

Try me, and know my anxieties;

And see if there is any wicked way in me,

And lead me in the way everlasting.” – Psalm 139:23-24 (NKJV)

And…

“O God, the proud have risen against me,

And a mob of violent men have sought my life,

And have not set You before them.

But You, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, and gracious,

Longsuffering and abundant in mercy and truth.” – Psalm 86:14-15 (NKJV)

We have to always remember that our LORD knows us better than we know ourselves. He knows all of our faults and foibles, and He loves us anyway. Like the first passage above says, we need to let God search our heart and root out any wicked way in us. Then, He promises to lead us in the way everlasting. Yes, because of the sacrifice of our LORD Jesus Christ on the Cross, we have Eternal Life in Him, despite any sin we may have committed.

In the second passage from Psalm 86, I first contemplated the second part, where it says that our LORD is full of compassion, and He is gracious. That part goes very well with the first passage from Psalm 139. However, in reading more of what precedes verse 15, I realized that verse 15 is written in response to verse 14.

If you have been following current events, there are many people who are very offended by Christians proclaiming the Truth of God. Turning Point USA, the organization founded by Charlie Kirk, the Christian activist who was assassinated earlier this year, is growing stronger every day, precisely because they are carrying forth Charlie’s message of the Truth of God. The spark that has led to TPUSA’s huge success was the death of Charlie. Once again, what the enemy meant for evil, God has used for good. TPUSA is gaining momentum, as many, many people are turning to God as a result of their effective outreach. This has naturally caused the ire of many people, as Christ Himself predicted. These enemies of God often call TPUSA’s speakers and followers the most horrible things, from haters to bigots, and have even referred to them as Nazis. These descriptions of TPUSA could not be further from the truth. Psalm 86:14 above was written for people like those of TPUSA, and really for all of us who stand for righteousness. No matter what anyone says, God sent his Son Jesus to die on a Cross, and He has the final word.

In Matthew 10:21-26, our LORD Jesus said, “Now brother will deliver up brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death. And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved. When they persecute you in this city, flee to another. For assuredly, I say to you, you will not have gone through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes. A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for a disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more will they call those of his household! Therefore do not fear them. For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known.” (NKJV)

Our LORD Jesus goes on to say in Matthew 10:27-42:

“Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on the housetops. And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.

Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.

Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’; and a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.’ He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.

He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me. He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward. And he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward. And whoever gives one of these little ones only a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple, assuredly, I say to you, he shall by no means lose his reward.” (NKJV)

In reading these passages from Matthew, I completely understand why many people today have an irrational hatred of Christians and for the message we proclaim. Truly, it is a hatred borne out of fear and anger toward the One, True God, Who holds their fate in their hands. It is a refusal to accept the One who can save them from the sin they so desperately cling to. Like the Apostles, we need to rejoice when we are reviled for our LORD’s sake, for that means we are doing something right.