Day 172 - Psalm 50-61

ONE-YEAR JOURNEY OF THE BIBLE
Day 173 - Psalm 50-61 (Everything is the Lord's)
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       ^'"For every beast of the forest is Mine, 
        And the cattle on a thousand hills. 
        I know all the birds of the mountains, 
        And the wild beasts of the field are Mine... 
        Offer to God thanksgiving, 
        And pay your vows to the Most High. 
        Call upon Me in the day of trouble; 
        I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me."
        (Psalm 50:9-15) 

God was telling the Jews in our text above that He did not need their animal sacrifices for He is not a God who eats the flesh of bulls or drinks the blood of goats.  He reminded them that everything on earth was His.   What God desired from them, rather, was for them to offer Him the sacrifice of thanksgiving and prayer.  

When my children were younger, I would sometimes ask them to share a favorite candy or food with me and one or two of them who were not naturally givers would hesitate or even flat out deny my request. Then, I would remind them that I was the one who paid for their candy or food and that being selfish in sharing it was not only wrong but could result in them no longer getting any candy from me.

Whenever we hesitate to give God what He requires and expects from us as His children and His creature, we act foolishly and forget that everything is His and that He could very easily take from us whatever He has given to us.  Not only that, God could withold His provisions from us or remove our ability to earn our provisions.

Although giving a portion of our material wealth to God is right and pleasing to God, it is really for our own benefit and not God's.  God doesn't need our money and material possessions which are all His anyway; rather, as the Psalmist in our Scripture passage wrote, God desires from us our sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving: 

        "Now consider this, you who forget God, 
        Lest I tear you in pieces, 
        And there be none to deliver:  
        Whoever offers praise glorifies Me; 
        And to him who orders his conduct aright 
        I will show the salvation of God."
        (Psalm 50:22-23)

Forget God by failing to give back to Him and honoring Him with your wealth which He has blessed you with and be torn to pieces by God in the end; or, offer praise to God, trusting Him for your soul and living righteously for Him and receive salvation from Him who alone can save you.  The choice is yours.