Psalm 37:1 Do not fret because of evildoers,
Nor be envious of the workers of iniquity.
The word fret a verb or doing word caught my attention. I followed this word in several other places in the Word.
Psalm 73:3 For I was envious of the boastful,
When I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
Zechariah 8:2 “Thus says the Lord of hosts:
‘I am zealous for Zion with great zeal;
With great fervor I am zealous for her.’
With great fervor I am zealous for her.’
The three words highlighted in red all come from the same Hebrew word - qanah #7065 (reference from Strongs concordance). This word occurs about 90 times in the OT and often refers to the Lord being provoked to jealousy by his people as they flirt with other God's. So it's a word that has good connotations when used in a way that promotes God's will and ways.
Isaiah 9:7 Of the increase of His government and peace
There will be no end,
Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,
To order it and establish it with judgment and justice
From that time forward, even forever.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.
There will be no end,
Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,
To order it and establish it with judgment and justice
From that time forward, even forever.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.
The zeal of the Lord will bring about the eternal reign of the Messiah. How exciting is that kind of zeal!! God has his plans for Jerusalem and his people, which will override all human plans and the enemies intent for God's people. Woo Hoo!!
How is this connected to Gates you ask?? Going back to Psalm 37:1 I now read it with an understanding of the meaning of the word "fret".
The Word says don't fret when you SEE the prosperity of the wicked. The gate -the eye- looks around and sees those who are not walking with God or even just out-rightly wicked and they appear to be flourishing. A response occurs within as we LOOK (a body gate) at what they are doing and how they might be benefiting by their actions and choices.
The temptation to fret or be anxious leads us to THINK (we have moved into the Soul-gate now), they are happy people, I want to be like them DESIRE (another soul-gate is opened). This then leads us to open up gates in the spirit man that believe lies or doubt in the spirit man.
For instance:
Can I trust God? (FAITH- GATE)
Will my life ever be fruitful? (HOPE-GATE)
Have I got what these people have got, am I missing out? (WORSHIP-GATE)
This started with us responding to an emotion/feeling; anxiety, fretting etc. Then we focus our body gates-eyes, ears, nose, mouth and feelings on the immediate. What is right in front of us. We are tempted to fret about this and our attention and focus has been taken off the things of the spirit and onto the the things of the flesh. This is the only place the enemy can get a victory over our soul-gate and next our spirit-gate. The body is the conduit for the enemy to move into the soul and hijack our spirit-man.
This moves us from trusting God to tempting him to work in our ways, in our timing and within our paradigms. How clever is the enemy he knows us very well, better than we know ourselves. I pray for greater understanding in my own life as to how these gates provide an access way for him to tempt, trick and lead me astray. It only takes one fleeting look at others, one fleeting thought about them and thier lives and the hijacking takes place and we are taken on a tangent. It's a split second moment where we have a choice and can decide NO to the enemies temptations.
We know what to do.
Psalm 37:3-6
3 Trust in the Lord, and do good;
Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
4 Delight yourself also in the Lord,
And He shall give you the desires of your heart.
Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
4 Delight yourself also in the Lord,
And He shall give you the desires of your heart.
5 Commit your way to the Lord,
Trust also in Him,
And He shall bring it to pass.
6 He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light,
And your justice as the noonday.
Trust also in Him,
And He shall bring it to pass.
6 He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light,
And your justice as the noonday.
Putting on the armour, worship, prayer etc are all part of the daily journey. A new challenge for me to embark on daily is a cleansing of these gates, body-soul-spirit so I don't get hijacked by a fleeting look, or smell, or touch, or sound, or taste. Which then leads to my soul being compromised and finally by spirit-man being depleted and living out of the flesh or a weakened spirit-man.
Like Jesus I want to be able to say, 'No temptation common to man overcame Him.' I want to live from my innermost spirit-man over flowing and flooding my soul and revealing His glory in my body to the world around.
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