God is surely in the business of providing His children with abundance. And His abundance comes with several flavors – He doesn’t limit abundance to just having a lot of money. It is so much more than that.
The Lord made many promises to us. He told us that following His ways would bring blessings. And here, in Psalm 84, the sons of Korah remind us of this truth:
“For the LORD God is a sun and shield. The LORD gives grace and glory; no good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly.” Psalm 84:11
Wrapped in this beautiful passage are four promises from God’s benevolent character to those who pursue Him. First, He promises to be something for us:
1. Sun
The actual Hebrew word here is shemesh, and it literally means “sun”, or “sunrise”. There are many applications to this word, but in summary, we can see that God is our light, our guide. He is our provider of warmth. He gives life giving sustenance. Not much could be accomplished without the radiance of God’s sun, and this verse emphasizes that God is all of that (and more) to us who “…walk uprightly.”
2. Shield
The original word here means “buckler”. This was a shield of war, used in hand-to-hand combat to protect a soldier from the weapons of his enemy. In this verse, the Lord is promising to be a protector of those who are His.
Not much need be said about the daily assault we experience. The stresses of work, family issues, global conflicts, economic uncertainties, and more bombard our minds without relent. Just to watch any portion of the news on any given day is enough to cause depression. And to some in the world, the threat of physical harm is a daily concern.
But there is an amazing reality to those who know the Lord, and it is this: He provides protection from those things, every day. While we may feel the pain of them for a time, God assures us that He is in control and calms our fretting heart. And surely He does provide protection, just as a shield stops the flying arrows and sword thrusts, He stops the assault of our world upon us.
Then, God promises to provide something to us:
3. Grace
The word grace, as the word sun, has many applications. Here, the original term was chen, and meant “favor” and “charm”. What is God saying? The idea is that God supplies special privilege to His people who follow Him. Simple as that! If we are God’s children (as shown by how we live and believe) then we are also the recipients of His “favor”.
There is nothing to compare with the benefit of being in God’s favor. Since He is the provider of all things anyway, how could any position or condition be better? It couldn’t.
4. Glory
Here again, a word which has many meanings and applications in the Bible. In this particular instance, glory (kabod) means “abundance” and “honor”. Notice that the phrase tells us “The Lord gives grace and glory…” This is something that comes straight from God above. It is not something man achieves for himself. He may try, but the best he can do is a thin veneer, a cheap imitation of glory.
The glory that God provides, His abundance and honor, are lasting and meaningful. When God provides these things, everyone realizes the source is God Himself.
It must be noted here that God provides these blessings to “…those who walk uprightly.” This is key. While it is true all people receive the results of God’s kindness in earthly blessings, this passage makes it clear the direct, intentional blessings from God are toward His people, alone.
Many people reject God and even mock Him. In His mercy, God does not remove them from all blessings (rainfall, sunshine, beauty, etc) but He also does not provide them with the guidance, protection, favor, and abundance He gives His own. God gives His glorious abundance specifically to His children.
The abundance of God includes blessings such as protection from harm, honor among men, and guidance for living. These are freely supplied to God’s people, those who walk in His ways, and follow Him.
This is the true life of abundance!
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