David [00:00:00 – 00:00:53]
As I said last week, one of the things that always awes me with Scripture is how God will take a familiar verse or chapter and reveal truths I’ve never seen or heard before. Even though I’ve studied the Scripture, read it many, many, many, many times, and what we know, God is truly multifaceted. It’s like a precious jewel, layer upon, layer upon of wisdom.
David [00:00:54 – 00:01:39]
I experienced this again recently with Psalm 23. I read an insight from someone that they shared about God’s heart being revealed in one of the verses. After looking at the verse mentioned, I decided to go back and read the whole chapter for context. As I did, the Lord began to show me how this chapter was a picture his relationship with us. And four things stood out to me. The Lord is my shepherd who provides. The Lord is my shepherd who protects. The Lord is my shepherd who prepares.
David [00:01:39 – 00:02:44]
The Lord is my shepherd who passionately pursues me. King David, in a great expression of thought, imagery creativity, crafted a description of God’s desire for a relationship with us. Over the next few weeks, we’re going to continue to drill down into this chapter and watch each of these verses speak to I want us to discover who the Lord our shepherd is. Not only who he is, but how he wants to relate to us. So let’s read the first three verses here in Psalm 23. Psalm 23:13 the Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside the still waters.
David [00:02:45 – 00:03:18]
He restores my soul. He leads me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. The Hebrew word here for Lord in this verse is Jehovah, the Lord Jehovah. And there are five characteristics of Jehovah that define who he fully is. Number one. The self existent, Eternal One.
David [00:03:19 – 00:03:40]
Number two, the God of all favor. Number three. He’s the one bringing into being the life giver, the giver of existence. He is the Creator. 4. He who brings to pass. He is a performer of his promises. 5.
David [00:03:40 – 00:04:17]
The one ever coming into manifestation as the God of redemption. Last week we began looking into the meaning of that first characteristic of Jehovah, the self existent, Eternal One. And we saw there were four key qualities that began to describe who our Lord is. He is self existent. He is eternal, ever living. He is immutable, which means unchanging. And he is self sufficient. If you haven t had an opportunity to listen to last week’s message, yet I encourage you to do so.
David [00:04:17 – 00:05:11]
It is rich in revealing who our Lord is and how he cares for us. And that was just the first characteristic of defining who Jehovah is. We have four more to go. Today we will discover more about who the Lord Jehovah is, looking into the second characteristic of the Lord my shepherd. He is the God of all favor. Now this is going to be exciting, guys. The primary Hebrew word for favor is hen or han, which also means grace, charm. It comes from a root word that suggests kindness of beauty and is often used to describe God’s gracious disposition toward his people.
David [00:05:12 – 00:06:00]
Another related word, translated favor in the Hebrew, means pleasure or delight, goodwill, often describing God’s acceptance and his blessing toward his people. God accepts you and he loves to bless you. He is the God of all grace, the God of all kindness. He takes pleasure in you. He delights in you. He desires to show you goodwill. He accepts and blesses you. The primary Greek word for favor in the New Testament is the word charis or charis, which is also translated as grace.
David [00:06:00 – 00:06:40]
Whenever you see the word grace in Scripture, it could be translated favor. Charis conveys the idea of unmerited favor, loving kindness, and divine love. Blessing. Another Greek word, sometimes translated favor is eudocia, meaning good, pleasure, approval, or delight. He is the God of unmerited favor, loving kindness, and divine blessing. He approves of you. Hallelujah. He approves of you.
David [00:06:42 – 00:07:32]
So let’s look at this first description of the God of all favor, kindness, and divine blessing. Genesis 6:8. This is from the NIV says this but Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord. So why did Noah find favor? It goes on in Genesis 6:9 and I’m going to read this from the new living translation, the NLT. But in Genesis 6:9 it says this. This is the account of Noah and his family. Noah was a righteous man, the only blameless person living on the earth at the time, and he walked in close fellowship with God. Three things we see here.
David [00:07:33 – 00:08:39]
Noah was righteous, or another word, for that is just in conduct and character, justified and vindicated by God, living as God directed him. Second, Noah was what is translated as blameless, or it could be translated perfect, means complete whole, entirely in accord with truth, a person of integrity. And the third characteristic we see here is he walked with God. He was in fellowship with God. He had a lifestyle of close relationship with the Lord. Now, as we go through Scripture today, we will see these three qualities present. All of those who find favor with God. So let’s look at another example of someone who walked in God’s favorite kindness and divine blessing.
David [00:08:39 – 00:09:33]
We see this in Exodus 33, 10, 17. All the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the tabernacle door. And all the people rose and worshiped each man in his tent do so. The LORD spoke to Moses face to face as a man speaks to his friend, and he would return to the camp. But his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart from the tabernacle. Now let’s pause here for a moment before we go on. Moses and Joshua, his assistant who served him, would go to the tabernacle of meeting, where Moses would meet with the Lord. We see that the Lord spoke to Moses as a friend.
David [00:09:34 – 00:10:22]
They had a relationship. They fellowshiped together. All three of the qualities we mentioned above God saw in Moses. Now, after speaking with the Lord, Moses would return to camp. However, Scripture goes on to say the young man Joshua would stay in the tabernacle in the presence of the Lord. Joshua was learning to fellowship with the Lord as he saw Moses do. This is why Joshua went on to become the leader of Israel. After Moses passed away, Joshua was learning to walk in the favor of the Lord that he saw Moses walk in.
David [00:10:22 – 00:11:12]
Now let’s continue reading here. In Exodus 33. Then Moses said to the Lord, see, you say to me, bring up this people. But you have not let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have said, I know you by name, and you have also found grace or faith favor in my sight. Now therefore, I pray, if I have found grace favor in your sight, show me your way that I may know you, and that I may find grace and favor in your sight. And consider that this nation is your people. And he said, the LORD said, my presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.
David [00:11:13 – 00:12:33]
And then he said to him, Moses said to him, if your presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here. For how then will it be known that your people and I have found grace and favor in your sight, except you go with us, so we shall be separate, your people and I, from all the people who are upon the face of the earth. So the LORD said to Moses, I will also do this thing that you have spoken, for you have found grace and favor in my sight, and I know you by name. And then in Exodus 33:17, I want to read that again. And the LORD said to Moses, this very thing that you have spoken I will do, for you have found Grace, favor in my sight. And I know you by name as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ and children of the Most High God. You have favor in his sight as you walk with him and live as he lives, as he directs you, the Lord goes with you. He is with you always.
David [00:12:34 – 00:13:23]
He knows you by name. We had this promise in Psalm 5, Psalm 5:12, and I’m reading this from the amplified classic for you. Lord will bless the uncompromisingly righteous, him who is upright and in right. Standing with you as with his shield, you will surround him with goodwill, pleasure and favor. There are two things in this verse that speak to God’s favor. You will bless the uncompromisingly righteous. The word bless here means empowered to prosper, increase and excel. God is going to empower you to prosper, to increase and excel.
David [00:13:24 – 00:14:08]
And then the word prosper there means to advance, to make progress, to succeed and profit. And so what we see, God wants us to advance, to move forward. God wants us to make progress. God wants us to succeed at what we’re doing and working on. And God wants us to profit. And so the favor of the Lord brings this to us. God gives it to us. When we walk with God, he empowers us to be all he created us to be.
David [00:14:10 – 00:14:42]
For God’s favor surrounds you as with a shield. That word shield there means as armor covering the body. It also speaks of God’s faithfulness. He never leaves you. He never forsakes you. He goes before you, preparing the way. He comes alongside you, never leaving you. He follows after you, keeping you, his bubble of favor shielding you.
David [00:14:43 – 00:15:22]
He is faithful to his word to never leave you or forsake you. The Lord your Shepherd, is always with you. Psalm 84:11 says this. For the Lord God is a sun and shield. The Lord bestows favor and honor. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly. The Lord is also a light to you and for you. He shines his light upon you, bestowing favor and honor all around you.
David [00:15:22 – 00:16:07]
When you walk upright before Him. Jesus has made you righteous through his righteousness. As a child of God, you can expect his favor and honor. In fact, it says here, no good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly. His favor, his blessing, his honor belongs to you. It’s a part of your inheritance. It’s a part of what he has given you by coming into relationship with him and receiving him as your Lord and Savior. We see this in Luke 1.
David [00:16:07 – 00:16:50]
When the angel Gabriel comes to Mary, he says this to her. Luke 1:28 and he came to her and said, greetings, O favored one. The Lord is with you. Gabriel comes to Mary and greets her. It could be translated greetings, O divinely blessed one, or highly favored one. Mary didn’t question what Gabriel said. She received His Word. One thing we see when studying the story of Christ’s birth is Joseph and Mary both exemplified the three characteristics.
David [00:16:50 – 00:17:53]
Those three qualities that brings God’s favor righteousness, blameless, and in fellowship with the Lord. And they both received the highest favor. Think about this. They were ordained and chosen, picked to be the parents of the Messiah because of the favor Joseph and Mary received. Paul could tell us in Ephesians 2 about us receiving the favor of the Lord. Also in Ephesians 2, 7 and 8 it says this so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace, his favor, and kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace or favor you have been saved through faith. Paul tells us here in Ephesians that his favor toward us is immeasurable.
David [00:17:54 – 00:18:27]
It’s vast. It’s infinite. As I said last week in the story I shared, it’s beyond. Beyond the Lord, my shepherd, the God of all favor, kindness, and divine blessings. Wow. But wait, that’s not all. He is also the God of all pleasure, delight, and goodwill. These are three other words that define the word favor.
David [00:18:28 – 00:19:04]
Psalm 149:4 for the Lord takes pleasure in his people. He adorns the humble with salvation. An aspect of God’s favor is the pleasure he takes in his people. And for his people he delights in you. He delights in you. One definition says, he desires his people. God desires you. And then the other word there I want to mention here for one it says, he adorns the humble salvation.
David [00:19:04 – 00:19:51]
That word adorn means to beautify or glorify, to crown with glory. He loves and favors you so much he wants to beautify you with salvation. He wants to glorify you with salvation. We see this expressed in Zephaniah 3. Again, Zephaniah 3:17 the Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty One who will save. He will rejoice over you with gladness he will quiet you by his love he will exult over you with loud singing. This verse shows the desire he has for his children. How he delights in you and takes pleasure in you.
David [00:19:52 – 00:20:35]
He rejoices over you with singing. And it says here loud singing. Let’s read this verse again in the Amplified classic. It gives us a little more insight. Zephaniah 3:17 in the Amplified says the Lord, your God is in the midst of you, a mighty one, a savior who saves. He will rejoice over you with joy. He will rest in silent satisfaction and in his love he will be silent and make no mention of past sins or even recall them. He will exult over you with singing Hallelujah.
David [00:20:36 – 00:21:26]
God’s expression of favor comes over us with joy, silent satisfaction, unconditional love and forgiveness Singing songs of love over you. Wow. You know, every time I read that verse and I read that phrase, silent satisfaction, it reminds me of my dad. We’d have family gatherings and dad would be sitting over in his chair across the room with this smile on his face, and I’d walk over and go, dad, you okay? I’m blessed beyond measure, David. Am so blessed. Look what God has done. He would sit there in silent satisfaction, rejoicing in the Lord. And God does that with us.
David [00:21:27 – 00:22:09]
He does that with us and he sings songs of love over you. God is singing over you. Wow. I can’t wait to hear what God is singing over me. The angelic host proclaimed his delight with us in Luke 2, when they came to announce the birth of the Messiah to the shepherds in Luke 2:14. And this is from the Amplified also. Glory to God in the highest heaven and on earth. Peace among men with whom he is well pleased, Men of good will, his favor.
David [00:22:10 – 00:22:55]
Wow. Paul goes on to confirm this in Ephesians the first chapter. In Ephesians 1, verse 5, he says he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ according to the good pleasure of his will. That word good pleasure could be translated favor according to the favor of his will. The good pleasure of his will. The Lord your shepherd, takes pleasure and delight in you, expressing his good will toward you. But wait, there’s more. That’s not all.
David [00:22:56 – 00:23:27]
He is also the God of all. Acceptance, approval, approval, an unmerited grace or unmerited favor. The Apostle Paul wrote the books of Romans and Ephesians. He wrote both of those books. So I’m going to read a verse from each book together as one. So I’ll read a verse from Romans and a verse from Ephesians. And so this is Romans 5:8 and Ephesians 1:6. And I’m going to read them together.
David [00:23:28 – 00:24:46]
And it says this. But God shows His love for us, and that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us to the praise of his glorious grace with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. Wow. Wow. Let me read those two Verses to you again from the amplified version. This is Romans 5:8 in the Amplified and Ephesians 1:6 in the Amplified. But God shows and clearly proves his own love for us by the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ the Messiah, the Anointed One, died for us so that we might be to the praise and the commendation of his glorious grace, grace, his favor and mercy which he so freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. Let me ask you, do you believe that God accepts you, that he approves of you, that his favor and mercy show his unconditional love for you? You are highly favored.
David [00:24:46 – 00:26:54]
You are accepted and approved by the Most High God, the Lord, your shepherd, who takes pleasure in you. Wow. Listen to what Paul tells us in Titus 3. This is Titus 347 in the Amplified. But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior to man as man appeared, he saved us not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but because of his own pity and mercy, by the cleansing bath of the new birth, the regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, which He poured out so richly upon us through Christ Jesus our Savior. And he did it in order that we might be justified by his grace, by his favor, his grace that is unmerited, wholly undeserved, that we might be acknowledged and counted as conformed to the Divine will and his purpose, thought and action, and that we might become heirs of eternal salvation, heirs of eternal life according to our hope. We are heirs of eternal life because of the undeserved favor the Lord our Shepherd has bestowed upon us. Knowing this, the writer of Hebrews goes on to say in Hebrews 4, and I’m reading again from the Amplified classic here, Hebrews 4:16 Let us in fearlessly and confidently and boldly draw near to the throne of grace, the throne of God’s unmerited favor to us sinners, that we might receive mercy for our failures and find grace to help in good time, for every need.
David [00:26:54 – 00:28:16]
Every appropriate help and well timed help coming just when we need it. The God of all favor, kindness and divine blessing, the God of all pleasure, delight and goodwill, the God of all acceptance, approval and unmerited favor has extended an invitation to us. Come fearlessly, confidently and boldly to the throne of unmerited for favor, and you will find favor to help you in good time for every need. What a promise. What a promise that is. What are you facing today? What are you believing God? For? What answer? Insider wisdom do you need? The Lord our shepherd, the God of all favor, is ready to act in your behalf. So come boldly and experience his mercy and grace his favor today. These verses that we’ve explored today reveal that God delights in blessing his people.
David [00:28:16 – 00:28:48]
Exclude
God delights in blessing you. You are his people. He takes pleasure in you. He extends his favor freely to you. He accepts and approves you through his grace in Christ Jesus. Rejoice and be glad in the Lord, your shepherd, the God of all favor. Amen. Let’s bow our heads in prayer today.
David [00:28:48 – 00:29:35]
Father, we thank you. We thank you for this insight, this understanding into who you are, the God of all favor, the God of all favor. And we thank you for your favor today. We thank you for extending your favor to us through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. And we thank you for surrounding us with your favor every day as we walk with you and fellowship with you and seek your face. Lord, we thank you for your blessing. We thank you for the answers you have for us, the solutions, the insight, the revelation that you have for us. We receive it all today and we give you praise and glory for it all.
David [00:29:35 – 00:29:51
Thank you, Jesus, for your faith. Amen. God bless you. You have a blessed week and walk in his favor. Pastor Kanye’s coming with a closing word prayer. God bless.
