Why ask God to bless us? We mention briefly the motive for a Christian to request for blessing, which is not a selfish or worldly one. Then what is it? The reason is given in verse 2 where the Psalmist says, “that thy way may be known upon earth..." (Psalm 67:2a). The "way" refers to the Truth of God, the Word of God or the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For God's truth to be known upon the earth is to carry and spread the gospel abroad and make it known to all those that have not known Christ! Thus, the reason to request for God's blessing as an individual or a church is far from a selfish motive. To ask God to "bless us" (Psalm 67:1a) and cause God's face "to shine upon us" really is to ask God to make us to be worthy instruments to carry out the gospel far and wide and to preach to all nations to know Him as Saviour. As the Psalmist says, "thy saving health among all nations" (Psalm 67:2b). This should also remind us of the Great Commission passage on Matthew 28:19-20 where it says, "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen." Not just Jerusalem, not just Judea, not just all of Israel, not just all the Middle East, not just all the Mediterranean world, not just his continent or hemisphere, but all the earth! God wants us to have the same heart and the same vision - for all the earth! Our LORD did not only charge us to evangelize and save souls, but also to make disciples of all the nations, and to teach them to observe all things that He has commanded us. Of course, we ourselves need to know God's Word and walk in His way first before we can disciple others. Walking in His way is more than knowing His Word! It means abiding and keeping them, not just knowing them. What is the use of teaching what one knows if he does not exercise them himself? One would never be effective in discipling others if he does not observe the teachings of Jesus himself. Therefore, this is the reason to request God to bless us. Do not be a member of the modern day 'bless me' club that always cries out to God, 'Bless me, bless me, bless me!' If so, your cry is essentially a selfish one, the kind of cry a self-interested and immature child makes. Yes, we unashamedly ask God to bless us both spiritually and even materially, if it is His will. However, we should be more concerned about God blessing us and others spiritually in Christ as the gospel is being carried out far and wide into other lands such as China, Cambodia, Indonesia, Vietnam, India and every other nation on the earth. Such should be our spirit of prayer as the Psalmist continues his plead in Psalm 67:3.

 

 

Have you ever prayed that all the people from every part of the world may come to know Christ as their Saviour? Salvation is of the Lord as we know from the Bible (Jonah 2:9), but there is nothing amiss to pray to the Lord to save all people on the earth according to His divine will which was foreordained before the foundation of the world. The psalmist says, "Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee." (Psalm 67:3). This is a prayer to God that many heathens from all nations may be converted and added into the kingdom of God. Why all people, if God has already chosen only some to be saved? Because we are commanded to pray for the salvation of heathen, which we were once before (Eph 2:12). Thus, it is fine to call upon all the people to praise God as the result of coming to Christ, and it is also biblical to ask God to bring all the nations to Himself to praise and know Christ as their Saviour! When an individual or a church pray like this, they pray according to the heart of God, who desires that none should perish but all come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9), and who has ordained a great multitude from all nations, tribes, peoples and tongues to praise Him before His throne (Revelation 7:9). Let us be cautioned that the idea is not to 'demand' God to save everyone, but it is a humble plea that out of every tongue and kindred many people may come to know Christ as foreordained and chosen before the foundation of the world (Eph 1:4). Do you have the same heart? Do you pray to God that all people, as many as are foreordained, may come to know Him? It is important for a Christian to pray like this because it helps a Christian to develop a burden for lost souls and a passion for missions work. Although it may not be possible for everyone to go on a mission field, but everyone in the church can and should pray for the salvation of people in far off lands, especially when a church is involved in a foreign mission work whether it be Cambodia, Thailand, India, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Canada, UK and other parts of the world.

 

…..to be continued.

 

Preacher David Weng