THE PATH OF LIFE
Key Verse: “You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy: at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” Ps. 16:11
Key Theme: The Lord as our securer of destiny and inheritance
Key Descriptives of God: Lord my Master; Lord my inheritance; Lord who guides me; Lord always with me
FULLNESS OF JOY
Psalm 16 is one of my favorite Psalms containing one of my favorite verses in the Bible, which is the above mentioned “key verse”. I frequently quote AW Tozer, “What you THINK about God is the most important thing about YOU.” Who and what comes to mind when you think about God will determine how much of Him you experience and how much of Him you reveal to others. You can’t give away what you don’t have. Perhaps one of the least seen or even understood aspects of God on earth, by even believers, is that the closer you get to Him the more joy there is available. Even if hard to press into that place on earth because of the challenges of life, we must know that is an “end game” so to speak. It is where we are headed. In His presence is “FULLNESS of joy”. This is not a little wry humor or general smiley cheerfulness. FULLNESS OF JOY is marked by what poured out in Acts 2 on those waiting in the Upper Room. Peter had to remark to the crowd that gathered, “We are not drunk as you suppose” because they “supposed” they were drunk. At Pentecost, throne room atmosphere was piped into the Upper Room. Around the throne room in heaven people look drunk with joy. There is loud laughter, tipsy people, people holding their stomach’s because of excess laughter, unsteady walking, shaking on the floor with joy, people overcome with merriment in every descriptive way, plastered people, everybody wanting to show a joyful dance to Papa, “Hey Papa look at this”, it’s a mayhem of good times. Fear not, if you are too spiritual to like this atmosphere you can always hang back a little from the throne room and perhaps maintain your dignity. Amazing Paradise with its beautiful trees is available too and less craziness. You have a choice. BUT— IN HIS PRESENCE— IS FULLNESS OF JOY.
PLEASURES FOREVER MORE
Now just in case that wasn’t descriptive enough, we are told that at His “right hand are PLEASURES forevermore.” If your emotions were made for anything they were made to experience throne room pleasures. The tastes of pleasure we have here on earth pale in comparison— but they are a taste. The word “pleasures” in Hebrew is NAYIM and it means “pleasant, delightful, sweet, lovely, agreeable, singing, sweetly sounding, musical.” Fullness of joy and unending pleasures are to be found immediately around His inner circle presence. Fun and ecstasy would be the mild descriptives of His immediate atmosphere. What does this tell you about Him? What you think about God is the most important thing about YOU. Let’s incorporate this upgrade into our thinking and into our showcasing. The world knows very little about this God-characteristic— because WE know very little about it.
BUT WHAT ABOUT ALL THE SUFFERING?
Now if you are suffering a lot and/or are deeply impacted by all the suffering on earth that may actually bother you. Why is He so happy and why is there so much merriment up there when so much suffering is happening down here? Well, remember not to try to be God yourself. Only He can simultaneously experience all appropriate emotions, and in a personalized fashion— at the same time. He weeps with those who weep. He cares even more than we do about all the suffering and injustice in the world. We can’t do what He can do perfectly which is celebrate, correct, instruct, rebuke, weep, laugh, provide, govern, pull back, be mad at the devil, be happy with His saints ALL AT THE SAME TIME. But at His core, He is all about unbelievable joy. Much laughter. It even splashes over when He looks over at the enemy doing sophisticated plotting of many years at how to take out God’s anointed on planet earth (Psalm 2). I am sure He calls over whoever is near Him and points out the dark plans being concocted and they share in a belly laugh. Then He deals with the plot itself — like He is doing today. He can maintain absolute joy at all times because ONLY He can see the end from the beginning. What seems to us as long periods of earthly suffering are microseconds of our eternal existence. We only have glimpses at His operations of redemption and so we can be tormented by what we can’t see and what we don’t understand. Understand this, If there is no panic around the throne and no overriding despair at temporary challenges, we are invited to operate from that foundation. Do the best we can with representing Him, and trust a lot. Angst-filled Christianity is SO unlike throne room Christianity. Let’s start with the end in mind.
SATAN’S THRONE ROOM
Now there is going to be so much untapped treasure from this chapter that I will have to leave for lack of time’s sake. Find it and feast on it as you can today. However, let me highlight some key lines that are almost self-explanatory. “Troubles multiply for those who chase after other gods.” The atmosphere of Satan’s throne room is bickering, arguing, cursing, finger-pointing, fear, hate, misery, torment, horrible music, and worse smells. In HIS presence is fullness of groaning and moaning and at HIS right hand is horrific despair forevermore. That is what he offers those who run after his false gods and unavoidably they will get a taste of it now. Satan cannot offer himself as god because he is so horrible at his core. He has to set up pseudos. “Troubles multiply” for those who follow them.
BOUNDARY LINES IN PLEASANT PLACES
“The boundary lines have fallen in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance.” (v.6) Though I emphasized the hereafter in what I so far communicated, David as he is prone to do, is all about “the land of the living.” Throughout the chapter, he speaks to THIS life. It is only in the last verse that he mentions where we are all headed so there is context to why he expects so much good on the way. He calls it THE PATH OF LIFE. Yes, there are challenges and contradictions, but this joyfully victorious God is available all along His pathway. Verse 6 tells us, we ALL have pleasant boundary lines of destiny available for us. When we stay on the Path of Life He has made available for us on earth there is always a “pleasant place” of call and destiny and a “delightful inheritance”. Oh, how I would like to develop that but my devotional focus of the day has already overextended. Make sure you read this whole chapter as verses 5,7, and 8 just can’t be missed— and the rest is loaded with good as well. A great chapter to experience His face shining upon us.
Written by: Johnny Enlow
Featured Image by chris ganser on Unsplash
67 DAY COUNTDOWN SERIES
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The 67 Day Countdown Series is brought to you by Johnny and Elizabeth Enlow, founders of Restore7 ministry, as well as international speakers and best-selling authors. Among Johnny’s books are The Seven Mountain Prophecy, The Seven Mountain Mantle, Rainbow God, The Seven Mountain Renaissance, Becoming A Superhero, and RISE. Elizabeth serves as CEO and penned Rainbow God: The Seven Colors of Love and God in Every Season.
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