1 Chronicles Devotionals – Moment to Moment (Bible blog)

If there was one enemy that often came against the Israelites, it was the Philistines.

Time and again, the Israelites conquered them.

Time and again, the Philistines came back to war against the Israelites.

In the same way, as Christians, we face a constant struggle with sin.

We may overcome temptation one day, but the next day, the temptation comes roaring back. And until we enter God’s kingdom, we will face that battle every day.

But don’t get discouraged.

Just as God gave David victory over the Philistines, he will give us victory over sin. And even when we fall, he is there to pick us back up.

So in our battle against sin, let us always remember Paul’s words.

“Finally, be strengthened by the Lord and by his vast strength. Put on the full armor of God so that you can stand against the schemes of the devil.

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this darkness, against evil, spiritual forces in the heavens.

For this reason take up the full armor of God, so that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having prepared everything, to take your stand.” (Ephesians 6:10-13)

The joy of our salvation

In this passage, we see David doing something very important in the psalm he wrote: he recalls the joy of his salvation.

(You also might want to read Psalms 96, 105, and 106, where this psalm came from…or vice versa).

You can see this most clearly in verse 23.

Let the whole earth sing to the Lord.
Proclaim his salvation from day to day.

Declare his glory among the nations,
his wondrous works among all peoples. (1 Chronicles 16:23)

Do we do this? Proclaim his salvation day after day?

David declared the salvation that God gave Israel from Egypt and all their enemies.

But we have a much greater salvation: salvation from sin and death.

Of course, we should declare his salvation to those around us day by day so that they can know him.

But I think we need to declare it to ourselves as well.

It’s easy to take our salvation for granted. To forget to be thankful for the grace we have received.

Or worse, we start to think that God has given up on us.

Either way, we lose our joy.

How about you?

Do you live in the joy of your salvation?

Or has the fire started to die down?

Take time to read the words of praise in this psalm. Highlight them. Underline them. Better yet, read them out loud.

And don’t just read them out loud, read them like you mean it.

Try doing it every day for the next week.

As you do, perhaps it would also be good to pray, “Restore the joy of your salvation to me.” (Psalm 51:12)

And let us never forget to say each morning,

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his faithful love endures forever. (24)