Psalm 147:10-11 “He delighteth not in the strength of the horse: he taketh not pleasure in the legs of a man. The LORD taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy.”
If you were in charge of hiring someone to lead an entire nation through a wilderness, what qualities would be valuable? If you were hiring someone to take on a conquering army with a minimal force, would you look for courage, ability, and experience? Would you look for a great orator to deliver a solemn message from God to a nation? All of those qualities certainly are valid; you wouldn’t send an inept person to do any of those jobs.
But our criteria and God’s criteria must be different. He chose Moses, Gideon, and Jeremiah, and each one had reasons why they couldn’t do what God told them to do. Moses said he couldn’t talk; Gideon said he was too weak; and Jeremiah said he was too young! It’s interesting that God’s patience seemed a little pushed in each of those cases. He told each one that He would empower him to do what He wanted.
I don’t know what you value in a person, but God doesn’t delight “in the strength of a horse” or “the legs of a man.” (verse 10) If the strength of a powerful horse couldn’t impress God, then no man, no matter how strong, would ever impress God. In contrast, verse 11 tells us, “The LORD taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy.” If you have strength, that is all the strength you are going to have. If you fear God, you will have all the strength that God has!
You can never impress God by something you do, whether that is never making a mistake, or being brave enough, smart enough, etc. God is not impressed by what man is impressed with. Moses had fear; God had strength. Gideon had fear; God had strength. Jeremiah had fear; God had more power than he could dream of! To impress God with our abilities is futile since He is the One who gave them to us in the first place!
Therefore, God should be praised (verse 1). Verse 5 says, “Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite.” God can help the weakest person because He knows the weakest person. God values our fear rather than our strength. When I fear God, I have all that I need and I need not fear anything else. Remember today that God will not be impressed by how spiritual, smart, or strong you are; God is impressed by people who are impressed by him.
Prayer Requests:
1. Revival services tonight in Margate, FL and Peach Springs, AZ
2. Deaf Rally this weekend in Memphis, TN
3. Ranch evangelists preaching this weekend in San Diego, CA; New Port Richey, FL; and Peach Springs, AZ