"Yield To God"

"For he hath broken the gates of brass, and cut the bars of iron to sunder." (Psalms 107:16)

 The title above is written between verses 15 and 16 in my Bible, so I really don't know for sure which verse it was meant to represent; both are suited nicely for such a title. When it comes to us experiencing all the power and strength available to live as God would have us to live, it is pretty much dependent upon our ability to yield to God. The last verses is one of several within this Psalm that say almost exactly the same thing; verses 8, 15 and 21 all have "O" as the beginning, yet verse 31 utilizes the word "Oh." Other than that, they are exactly the same. Looking back to he Title of this Psalm, the one written in my Bible, "God Rescues Us," there is something that we need to consider about being rescued from anything, that we must be totally and completely yielded to the Rescuer! We can flail our arms and put up a fight, but God will just patiently wait for us to loose every bit of strength we might think that we have, until we learn to let go and let God. I heard a very good message from Pastor Jon yesterday, it was about our continued desire to try and work towards gaining God's approval. Nothing that we can do will ever outdo what Christ has done; His blood perfected our Salvation, there is nothing that we can do that will make us more holy than we have already been made. We simply need to walk in that holiness! All the stupid stuff you have ever done, none of that can stick to you; I don't care if it was something you did yesterday or even today; when you confess your sins to God, you are cleansed, period! Sure, there might be some fallout or repercussion for any sin that we are guilty of, but God will hold us totally blameless and justified under the blood of Christ. Even if your sin were to be enough to have the world put you to death, you are safe and secure in God. Let me tell you what this verse speaks into my heart: that the Lord has done all the heavy lifting; He has cleared the way for us to walk in His victory, we just need to rest in His accomplished work and quit trying to do what He has already done. I don't want Jesus to be my crutch, I need Him to be my wheelchair...

"This is what the LORD says to Cyrus, his anointed one, whose right hand he will empower. Before him, mighty kings will be paralyzed with fear. Their fortress gates will be opened, never to shut again. This is what the LORD says: "I will go before you, Cyrus, and level the mountains. I will smash down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron. And I will give you treasures hidden in the darkness -secret riches. I will do this so you will know that I am the LORD, the God of Israel, the one who calls you by name. "And why have I called you for this work? Why did I call you by name when you did not know me? It is for the sake of Jacob my servant, Israel my chosen one. I am the LORD; there is no other God. I have equipped you for battle, though you don't even know me, so all the world from east to west will know there is no other God. I am the LORD, and there is no other. I create the light and make the darkness. I send good times and bad times. I, the LORD, am the one who does these things."" (Isaiah 45:1-7) NLT