Meditation - The Key To Listening

Welcome to the intense podcast tile for Monday, November 29. Meditation is the key to listening and understanding. Today's podcast begins a series titled meditation. The power of silence. If I'm going to be a follower of Jesus Christ that I have to know where to go and also nowhere to go. I have to be able to listen to it, and upon going to listen to them on how to learn how to listen to the part of learning to listen is meditation. Being able to meditate upon him at upon his word and focus upon him in such a way that God is able to do something in my life that conforms with his likeness that we think about meditation today. The easterners have sort of taken that word and put all the connotation I went in the Scriptures, meditating upon God was a lifestyle for God's servants in his sight. The day meditation people think about yoga and all the rest.

But God's people have probably gotten away from one of the most essential elements of the Christian life. If you are not going to be men and women of God's almost look at the passion of Scripture because David the one man that God said here's a man after my own heart. If you look at his life.

You think a man of your own heart.

Look at all the things he did were wrong.

There were evil here is committing no telling lies in committing murder and adultery and all the rest of God.

So here's a map to my own heart.

A man who knew how to meditate upon God.

So when you turn if you will. The second sent second Samuel is an event in the life of David and if you'll notice in the seventh chapter of where he is at this point and they will read that little later on.

The chapter the Scripture says in second Samuel chapter 7 now it came about when the king that is David lived in his house and the Lord had given him rest on every side from all of his enemies. Therefore, the wars are over. The battles have been fought. He had wanted.

Now he's resting he's taking a little easy and so Nathan came to them and they had a discussion about several things and then if you notice it says in verse eight now therefore, thus you shall say, God is speaking to Nathan now you shall say to my servant David thus says the Lord of host and then he tells him what he wants him to tell David so you little background on readers. He said I took you you telling this now tell and I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep that you should be ruler over my people Israel, and I have been with you wherever you've gone and have cut off all your enemies from before you, and I will make you a great name, like the names of the great men who are on their listen when you not think of great biblical characters who's always in the crowd. David, I will also point a place for my people Israel and will plant them, that they may live in their own place and not be disturbed again. No with the wicked afflict them in immoral formally even for the day that I commanded judges to be over my people Israel, and I will give you rest from all your enemies, the Lord also declares to you that the Lord will make a house for you when your days are complete in your lot and with your fathers when you die, I will raise up your descendents, your descendent after you and who will come forth from you and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name and I will establish the throne of the kingdom forever.

Speaking of solemn, I will be a father to him and will be, and he will be a son to me. When he commits iniquity, I will correct them with a rod of men of the strobes of the sons of men, but my lovingkindness shall not depart from him is out to get away from Saul, whom I removed from before you in your house and your kingdom shall endure before me forever. Your throne shall be established forever in accordance with all these words in all this vision so Nathan spoke to David, so with that background in mind here, Nathan, who is a friend to David, and who listens to God and gives him words of instruction in words of comfort and assurance. He spoke of the David these words that I want you notice what this 18th verse says, then David, the king went in and sat down before the Lord, and he said how MRO Lord God and what is my house that thou has brought me this far and yet this was insignificant and non-eyes that is the great things that you've done for me. He says they were great to me but there were insignificant your eyes. That is, they didn't test your power, your wisdom, he says the Lord God, for thou has spoken. Also the house of our servant concerning the distant future, and this is the custom of man, O Lord God, and again, what more can David say to the thou knowest not serve the Lord God for the sake of the word and according about own heart, thou has done all this greatness to let our servant know. For this reason, thou art great, O Lord God, but there is none like the and there is no God beside the according to all that we've heard without ears and on he goes you know what Dave is doing. David is meditating upon the Lord, and of course you can see who is at the center of his attention.

What is it is meditating upon the Lord God now David knew how to live in touch with God, not just get in touch with God. He knew how to live in touch with God. He knew how to relate to God wasn't someone who was up younger to David God was someone in whose presence he walked and live and talked and felt and wondered and discovered and investigated. He was continually seeking to know God. All for the Psalms, David, what is hidden he's expressing who God is. To him how to get to that point to be able to say that because he had so focused his attention upon God. All Lord God, he says, verse after verse eight so focused his attention upon God to discover who he was and what he was like that meditating upon him and the night watches upon his bed thinking about him as he walked along in life. Meditation was a vital part of his life.

Here is the man about whom God said this is a man after Mount heart. The man he's not a man who is perfect. Not a man who always obeys not a man who is always righteous and holy, but a man who's after my heart a man who strives man who fails a man who succeeds and fails and succeeds and fails defeated in battle victorious in battle, defeated in his personal life victorious in his personal life. God says he is a man after my own heart. What makes those men and women after the heart of God. I'll tell you what is look, if you will, in verse 16, chapter 63 verse 10 God, thou art my God, I shall seek the earnest let my soul thirsts for the my flesh yearns for the what makes men about whom God can say women about whom God can say a man after my own heart. A woman after my own heart.

Those who have a deep yearning hungering thirsting insatiable, never fulfilling, and yet ever fulfilling desire for God that governs their schedule that governs their thought life that governs what they do and how they expend their time and their images in life and the priority around which everything else revolves is their personal relationship to God. You don't just automatically know how to meditate upon God, I want to say this again I'd set 100 times. If you make a difference.

You and I will never be able to live godly in Christ Jesus until we learn to listen to him, and learning to listen to him means I must learn to meditate upon someone asked a couple questions.

When's the last time by self. He spent 30 minutes nobody had no telephone, no television, no magazines, no nothing. Just you and God and his word is to be read the Psalms and say what an insight David had in the God you know why because this man knew how to listen this live in touch with not get in touch with him live in touch with him, moment by moment, day by day, when the Bible says in this 18th verse. Then David, the king went in and sat before the Lord. I will tell you he didn't go in and sit in some king's chair very pious before God is the King guess what that meant. It means that David sent before the Lord in reverence before Almighty God. Here's a man who is meditating upon God, and he was sitting in that position talking to the father. Listening to him meditating upon God and before things I want to say about how he did it because I simply want you to walk away with one thing in mind.

First of all you and I will never be what God wants us to be. Until we learn the simple principle, he can't be forget it is not going to happen. I don't care how well you may do anything else in life until you and I make this a priority in our life. And until we learn to meditate upon him. Listen to this. Learn to be satisfied meditating upon him as the Bible says they like to sell the Lord to give the desires of your heart had a really good delight yourself in the Lord. It takes time to delight yourself about we talking about feasting, hungering, thirsting, meditating, absolving, giving of ourselves thinking about talking to listening to Almighty God. So therefore things are when you jot down the simple for things and I don't think you forget them. Here's what David did when he meditate upon God, the first thing he would do is that he reviewed the past this and what he says this passage, then David, the king went in and sat before the Lord, and he said who and how Lord God and what is my house that you have brought me this far. Here he is now sitting before the Lord and asking the Lord, Lord, who am I to am I Lord that you brought me this far and what what in the world was he talking about is what he was thinking about because you see Nathan just got through telling me said that you tell him you tell him remember I took you from the sheep from the pasture. Now one the best ways to keep yourself humble before God's memory came from not only up to go back for your whole life every time you get on your face before God and kneel before him. I'll tell you one thing, there is something about reverencing God to the point that you humbled yourself before him, and bow your knees before him, at least once every day that will profit you knew. So how that profit me. I don't even know that I'm tell you that I just know that in the bay and what you and I live in reverence for God and and irreverence about God and a casual lackadaisical attitude about God and holy thing will defeat you ultimately if you're not careful.

There's something about acknowledging God's holy and he requires and demands, but most of all he desires that I honor him as God. I'm not talking about your prayer time did nothing about the newborn read the Bible in your Bibles that I'm talking about just being quiet, meditating upon him is something about just letting God review the day will be good things to be things that you would like to change things that you need to confess the Lord about Laura Shipman said that I should've done this. Thank you that I didn't feel that jab that was sent my wife. Thank you, dear God for being my Lord all day long. Guess what that does reviewing the past. Reminds me of the loving, tender care of God in my heart all day long you so you not know much to think about less front-runner correct right now because if you start doing this you begin to think more and more about what's going to happen is Psalm 63 this hungering thirsting yearning for him is going to increase and I can tell you with all of my heart, if you will end your day talking with him. You gonna wake up feeling good.

You see, reviewing the past.

What is it do, but it elevates Almighty God's place in my life and I'll tell you one of the thing it does it absolutely it. Listen, it extols and exalts him as God of her life.

Because all of a sudden the most important thing you want is just O Lord God, so first of all, reviewing the past.

The second thing. If you notice this passage, he says, look in verse 22. For this reason, thou art great, O Lord God, for there is none like the and there is no God, beside the according to all that we've heard with our ears.

What happens, we begin to reflect not only just the things that God does. But we reflect on God himself, and I think here are three words that you can jot down that will be frequently a part of your meditation as you think about God.

First of all, his greatness, how great he is.

I'm not talking to just the word omnipotence and in big major things that God does, though he does many of those which you may be going through some situation, circumstance in your life for God to move in a simple way is an act of of of a great God that he loves you that much.

The greatness of God. A second aspect of is the grace of God. He so good he so kind. He so loving he so gracious he so sensitive he so concerned you see what happens is when you not begin to meditate we now review the past, but as I review the events of the past.

I reflect on him what God's doing and this is what Dave is doing as he recalls in reduces past that is reflects upon God. What happens the greatness the graciousness and third, the goodness of God. Just what happens in just begins to mount in our thinking.

We look over a day or a week or a month or a year.

What happens the greatness of God. The graciousness the grace of God, the goodness of God. What's happening all the time. We are thinking about these things we are learning the ways of God. Because you see we learn the ways of God, not about what he does in ally, but by watching what he does not be we learn the ways of God. And so what David is saying here in this 21st second verse. For this reason that what grade O Lord God, for there is none like the there's no God beside the according to all that we've heard with our ears and then the third word I want you jot down is remember his promises. When you not meditating upon Hillman reviewing the past was the day of the week of the month or whatever it might be, and every once in a while we need to go far beyond the day and see was happened in the week and see what's happened in the months and years and just keep going back and recalling how good and gracious and kind and loving and great God is been to your life and you see the overflow of meditation is that we are discovering who he is with discovering what he's like and so the promises of vital and that's why I would not say don't open the word of God. When you deal the prey because personally except in the bedrock cut out the lights. I've always got it open. The promises of God are vital to our knowledge and understanding and vital to learning to meditate upon him because those promises are expressions of what expressions of love expressions of caring and kindness and goodness toward and then jot down one last word and that is request because in meditation.

Meditation isn't just recalling and reflecting. It isn't just thinking about God, though that is a part of it is just reminding ourselves of all the things that happen.

As David did have a look at this 29 verse now therefore, may it please the to bless the house about serving the listeners that it may continue forever before the old bow, O Lord God has spoken and without blessing by the house about a servant be blessed forever.

You know what happens when you meditate upon the Lord your Faith rises your faith enlarges you find yourself when you do come the petitioning him remake and request that you don't have any hesitation about making the request, you know why because you been recalling what is been doing in the past and you have been reflecting on his greatness in his goodness and his grace toward you and as you thought about those things and as you have reflected on all the things he's done the past. Then when it comes to making a request. What happened you see what is done in the past, remembering the promises he's given you, and what happens you can make big request of God that meditation is the time just make a whole bunch of request. Remember meditation is a time you not reflecting upon them. That is the key central figure in meditation is not my needs. My request my hurts, my wants my wishes my desires. The central figure in meditation is God and everything revolves around him.

I'm reflecting on the past the light of who he has been in my life. I am reflecting upon him because of who he is within me, and I am recalling these promises of God and remembering these promises because these are things that he said to me, and I make my petition overwhelmed absolutely full of the rich faith of God. That is one that is an overflow of just looking to him thinking about. Thank you for listening to meditation.

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