Pastor’s Corner

Trivia:

Great job everyone, You got it right. Anything traveling at Mach 5 or faster is referred to as “hypersonic” which is five times the speed of sound or greater, or 3,800 miles per hour. This is considered advanced aerospace, and is designed to withstand the intense heat & pressure conditions that can be experienced at this speed.

Here’s an interesting trivia question. Who was the tallest president in U.S. history so far? Donald Trump; Barack Obama; Abraham Lincoln; Joe Biden?

Challenge:

Psalm 108:6-13 “Now rescue your beloved people. Answer and save us bu your power. 7 God has promised this by His holiness: “I will divide up Shechem with joy. I will measure out the valley of Succoth. 8 Gilead is mine, and Manasseh, too. Ephraim, my helmet, will produce my warriors, and Judah, my scepter, will produce my warriors, and Judah, my sceptor, will produce my kings. 9 But Moab, my washbasin, will become my servant, and I will wipe my feet on Edom and shout in triumph over Philistia.” 10 Who will bring me into the fortified city? Who will bring me victory over Edom? 11 Have you rejected us, O God? Will you no longer march with our armies? 12 Oh, please help us against our enemies, for all human help is useless. 13 With God’s help we will do mighty things, for He will trample down our foes.”

The last verse 13 sums up just what God has promised He will do for Israel His people; “With God’s help we will do mighty things.”

Now, the verses written before this last verse the Lord informs us the many ways that He will deliver Israel from its foes.

The places that He mentions are cities that are surrounded around Jerusalem in a circular pattern.

Shechem was a city in the tribe of Manasseh, that was located about 65 miles to the north of Jerusalem, its location is mentioned in Genesis 12:6. This was a city that Abram traveled to and camped there by the forest of oak trees, which the Canaanite people lived around.

The valley of Succoth is a city that is east of the Jordan River which is where Jacob built his house and made various shelters for his livestock, in fact, the name of the city Succoth means “shelters”. We find this insight in Genesis 33:17

Gilead is a mountainous area to the east of Succoth. We find it referred to in a number of verses in the Psalms. (Obadiah 1:19 was ultimately assigned to the tribe of Benjamin)

Manasseh is the place that Moses assigned to the tribes of Gad, Rueben, and half of the tribe of Manaseseh. This is mentioned in Numbers 32:33 these tribes were given this land on both sides of the Jordan, presumably due to their primary concern for raising livestock. They were generally cattle and sheep herders.

Ephraim was assigned their land being on the west of the Jordan River, between Manasseh and Benjamin. You can find this clarification found in Genesis 48:20.

Judah was generally a term used to designate the whole southern kingdom, which included Jerusalem. The inference of Judah as the tribe that carried the royal line of kings. We notice this role of Judah being mentioned in Genesis 49:10, where they were associated with the royal lineage of Israel. (kingship)

Moab was an enemy people that lived east of the Dead Sea and southeast of Jerusalem. They were mentioned many times in the Old Testament for instance in the book of Ruth 1:1 we see them mentioned there. In verse 9 of this Psalm they are recognized as the nations washing pot, which was meant to infer their place of subservience to His people, Israel.

Edom was the area south of the Dead Sea, and was inhabited by the Edomites who were descendants of Jacob’s brother Esau. We notice the conflict that was referred to in Genesis 27 between Jacob (Isaac’s favored son) & Esau (Rebekah’s favored son). This rivalry seemed to be referred to not just in their time of birth but also throughout the Old Testament. They were God’s answer to Isaac’s prayer for Rebekkah’s to be blessed with a child, and so God gave her twins whose rivalry ultimately became a blessing to Israel in the long run. Take a look at Genesis 25:19-28 and beyond with the many events that they led Israel through. They finally made peace with each other in Genesis 33.

There is many more details in the surrounding stories that’s are hinted to here in this passage, but due to the time frame we have, lets look to the final verse 13, “With God’s help we will do mighty things,” This phrase is meant to remind us of God’s plan for each of us. If we will but depend, call, rest, and daily look to Him “Our Great Mighty God” He will go before us and lead the way to victory.

SO GO WITH GOD for His plans are for victory in our lives. What is the necessary ingredient? Verse 12 tells us, “Oh, please help us against our enemies.” Our only source of success is consistently calling upon God, for He is our only source of blessings. Why not stop this very minute and reflect on the challenges that you face in the coming days and ask God for His assistance in these things? Remember, “With God’s help we will do mighty things.”