Put it into Context

Psalm 65:1-4
Praise is awaiting You, O God, in Zion;
And to You the vow shall be performed
O You who hear prayer,
To You all flesh will come.
Iniquities prevail against me;
As for our transgressions,
You will provide atonement for them.
Blessed is the man You choose,
And cause to approach You,
That he may dwell in Your courts.
We shall be satisfied with the goodness of Your house,
Of Your holy temple.

Good morning/afternoon/evening!

We're going to be looking at that fourth verse today. A lot of people says that this is why they believe in predestination. But when you put the verse into context, it changes the meaning a bit.

'Blessed is the man You choose' is different that 'Blessed is the man You choose and cause to approach You'. In the second one, it sounds more like 'Blessed is the man You call to prayer' to me, which different than God picking at choosing who goes to Heaven.

Of course, God calls all of us for something. He calls us each, at some point, to be saved. We don't have to answer this calling, though.

So what did we learn today?
1. Putting a line that doesn't make sense into context will help your understanding of God's word. He never meant for us to read a sentence at a time.
2. God calls us, whether we answer or not, but He will bless those that He calls (and especially those who answer that calling to prayer (aka salvation)).

Have a great week in the world God's created for us!
In His Service,
Joyce