Spurious Godliness: A Meditation on Psalm 12
Psalm 12
1 Help, LORD; for the godly man ceaseth; for the faithful fail from among the children of men.
2 They speak vanity every one with his neighbour: with flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak.
3 The LORD shall cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaketh proud things:
4 Who have said, With our tongue will we prevail; our lips are our own: who is lord over us?
5 For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the LORD; I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him.
6 The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.
7 Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.
8 The wicked walk on every side, when the vilest men are exalted.
Devotional
If David were here today, he could say of the state of affairs in the world what he said of the conditions which prevailed when he lived. Today it can be said that wickedness and depravity arc everywhere. There is no more any regard for right and truth in the hearts of men.
Even among those who profess the name of God iniquity and false dealing abound. There are conspiracies among them to destroy the guiltless and helpless. It is horrible to think that righteousness is trodden under foot among those who profess religion, but is it not so ? There are numbers of high professors that are set against a good cause.
Those on whom reliance was placed for the cause of the Lord now fail. Promises are made only to be broken. Lightly they break solemn oaths because they took them lightly. Easily enough they assume sacred obligations. Yet never do they put forth a hand to fulfill one of them.
There is deceit and flattery. They cover their words with the varnish of hypocrisy. No one is ever certain what they mean. Their smooth and fair speech is only to spread a net for fte feet of the guileless.
Profession Not Enough
Profession of piety is not enough to lead men to have confidence in their statements. They deal falsely and speak vainly. What hope is there for the upbuilding of true faith in the world, when men's words are as sounding brass and tinkling cymbal! They rely upon their very gift of speech to influence and persuade others to fall in with their dishonorable plans.
Having been found out, they seek protection in lies rather than suffer rebuke as a Christian. They will not swear to their own hurt but turn like a sail to take advantage of every favorable wind that blows. They go on to distort all things and pervert all right and conscience. Their darkness is so great that it is no exaggeration to say that they almost cover the brightness of the sun.
(to be continued)
"Lift Up Your Heart" is a series of devotionals by the late Rev. David Freeman, an ordained minister in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church for most of his life. These devotionals, in fact, are part of the early history of our denomination. The first of them was published in The Presbyterian Guardian in 1935; the denomination now known as the Orthodox Presbyterian Church was officially formed in 1936. We believe that "the Word of our God stands forever" (Isaiah 40:8; see 1 Peter 1:25). Thus it is no surprise that meditations based on that Word have continued relevance today. Dr. Freeman's devotionals are proof of that fact.
David Freeman was a graduate of Princeton Theological Seminary (Th.B., 1928; Th.M. , 1930) and of Dropsie Univiersity (Ph.D., 1951). He served as pastor at Grace (later New Covenant) Presbyterian Church (OPC), Philadelphia, PA (1936-1946), Knox Presbyterian Church (OPC), Philadelphia, PA (1949-1962), and Grace Presbyterian Church (OPC), Fall River, MA (1962-1967). He authored many articles and (along with his son, David H. Freeman) is the author of the book A Philosophical Study of Religion, which appeared in 1964. He went to be with the Lord in 1984.
There is one change from the way the daily devotional was handled in the past with John Skilton's Think On These Things: New devotionals for the new series appear on weekdays only (Monday through Saturday. It is suggested that you use your pastor's sermon text(s) as the basis for your mediations on the Lord's Day.
We trust that you will find these devotionals, once again made available seventy years after they first appeared, to be a personal help in your own Christian walk today!
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