#DailyDevotion The God Of Israel Alone Is God!
Psalm 86 5You, O Lord, are kind and forgiving, full of mercy for all who call to You. 6O LORD, listen to my prayer and hear my plea for mercy. 7When I’m in trouble, I call You because You answer me.
The psalmist here is telling back to God what He says His name is, i.e. His character. It is the revealed name of God in Ex. 34:6, “the LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, slow to get angry, rich in love and faithfulness, 7continuing to show mercy to thousands, forgiving wrong, rebellion, and sin, without treating it as innocent…” Based on who God says He is, the psalmist asks his prayer to be listened to and heard. It’s always a good thing to base our prayers on who God says He is. Our prayers should be based on the promises of God and God’s character. All based on his past experience with the LORD answering his prayers, he calls upon the LORD to answer him.
8There’s no god like You, O Lord, and no accomplishment like Yours.
Indeed, what other god man has ever invented has delivered a people who worshiped him as the LORD did for His people. He brought them out of Egypt with plagues. He destroyed the Egyptian army, collapsing the Red Sea on them. He spoke to them from the mountain. He time and again miraculously delivered His people. Finally, He became one of us, Jesus Christ, that in His flesh, He may pay our ransom from death and hell, He would make atonement for our sins by His blood and redeem us. No other god has ever done this. None. If anyone says there have been, they are either ignorant or liars. Maybe they’re both, but most likely they are repeating the lies of others who know better.
9All the nations, whom You made, will come and worship You, O Lord, and honor Your name.
Indeed since Pentecost, as the Gospel of Jesus has gone out, people of every language, tribe, race and nation have come and worshiped the LORD, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. They honor His name by trusting in His promises and looking for salvation only in Christ Jesus, the Son of God. On the Last Day, even those who do not trust in Him will have to worship and honor Him as LORD, even though they do it against their will.
10Indeed, You are great and do wonders; You alone are God. 11Teach me Your way, O LORD; I want to live in Your truth; make me respect Your name with all my heart.
He emphasizes again that only the LORD is God who is great and does wonders. Therefore, we ask Him to teach us His way, to live in His truth and respect His name with all our hearts. This He does when He baptizes us into His name, gives us His Holy Spirit, and brings us to His Word and Sacraments for the creation, edification and perseverance of our faith. The Holy Spirit fulfills this in us as Jesus promised in John 15, 26“When the Comforter comes, Whom I’ll send you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, Who proceeds from the Father, He’ll tell the truth about Me.” Also in John 16 Jesus says, 13“When the Spirit of truth comes, He will lead you into the whole truth. What He will say will not come from Himself, but He’ll speak what He hears and tell you what is coming. 14He will glorify Me, because He’ll take from what is Mine and tell it to you.” So as we hear, read and participate in His Word and Sacraments, the Holy Spirit teaches us the way of the LORD, has us live in His truth and has us respect the name of the LORD with all our heart.
Heavenly Father, You have shown that You alone are God with the Son and the Holy Spirit by Your great works through your people. Continually give us Your Holy Spirit that we may look to You alone for all good things and we may be confident You hear our prayers and answer them. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.