Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study - Whose Words Matter Most? | The Writings | Psalm 29

Episode Date: February 8, 2024

Does God have the power in your life to shake you? Whose words have the most impact on your life? In today's episode, Patrick dives into Psalm 29 to discover the importance of taking God's word seriously. Read the Bible with us in 2024! This year, we’re tackling a group of Old Testament books traditionally known as “The Writings”— Psalms, Chronicles, Proverbs, Daniel, Ruth and more! Download your reading plan now. Your support makes TMBT possible. Ten Minute Bible Talks is a crowd-funded project. Join the TMBTeam to reach more people with the Bible. Give now. Like this content? Make sure to leave us a rating and share it so that others can find it, too. Use #asktmbt to connect with us, ask questions, and suggest topics. We'd love to hear from you! To learn more, visit our website and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter @TenMinuteBibleTalks. Don't forget to subscribe to the TMBT Newsletter here. Passages: Psalm 29

Welcome to 10 minute Bible talks, where we connect the Bible to your life. In the time it takes to get to work. I'm Patrick Miller. What has the power to shake you? Years ago when I was an employee at Best Buy, I remember my boss coming up to me and letting me have it for some mistake I made. I don't even remember what I did or if I deserved to be chewed out, but I do remember the impact his words had on me. They shook me, spiked my cortisol levels, cranked up the anxiety, pumped up the address, I do remember that I couldn't sleep that night, and for the next month I felt uneasy at work.

I was worried I'd make another big mistake and get a blistering critique. Whose words have the power to shake you? To keep you up at night, to make you anxious, to make you feel ashamed. Maybe it's a boss or a significant other, or a mentor, or a parent, or a friend. Whoever it is, I can almost guarantee that at some point in the last year, and probably at multiple points, you've had someone say something that shook you up. Sometimes that can be bad. People can use words to shame and belittle us,

but sometimes that can be good. When a friend challenges you to see a sin that's destroying your life, then praise God for that shaking. When a loved one calls you on how your words are hurting others, praise God for that shaking, sometimes we need to be shaken. And in Psalm 29, we find an ancient song claiming that there is one voice that should be more shaking than any other.

But here's the question I want you to ask yourself as we read. Does God have the power to shake you up like this? Psalm 29, verse 4. The voice of Yahweh is powerful. The voice of Yahweh is full of majesty. The voice of Yahweh breaks the cedars. The voice of Yahweh breaks the cedars of Lebanon. He makes Lebanon skip like a calf and Sireon like a young wild ox.

the voice of Yahweh flashes forth in flame. Yahweh shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. Does God have the power to shake the ground in your life? To send out tongues of fire and burn away what is toxic in your life? Does his voice break the cedars, quake the ground, and rattle the wilderness in your soul? Or are God's words small to you? I ask because while it's true that some people have the power to shake us with their words, most people don't there are plenty of people who could say hard things to me and while it might

briefly cause me pain or discomfort i wouldn't lose any sleep over it why because that person's opinion of me doesn't matter much to me or maybe i don't think that person has the authority or expertise to say what they're saying but the point is that the same words hit you different depending on who says them just take these words you're the worst dad ever when my son says those words to me after i sent him to his room for hitting his sister, they don't sting very much. But if my wife said the same words, you're the worst dad ever, I would lose sleep. Not only because I care about what she thinks, but because I value her opinion on my parenting. She sees more of it than anyone else and is in the best position to evaluate it. But most of all, the words that should matter most to me,

the words that should shake me up, are the words of God. What if God's word told me that I was being a harsh parent or an angry parent or a passive parent or a permissive parent or a disinterested parent those words should shake me more than any other words but the truth is sometimes they don't i can so easily read my bible and skim past the words that should convict me that should shake me maybe you're the same way have you ever felt like sometimes the words of people are big but the words of god are small Have you ever felt like the opinions of people are big, but the opinions of God are small? Is it easier for humans to shake you up or for God to shake you up? The reason why God's words shake us isn't merely because of his power.

They shake us only if we're willing to hear them, to be humble before them, to confess and to let him shake us. Where is God trying to shake you right now? Where are you making his voice small and powerless? where do you need to confess and move forward? Here's my encouragement. God is not like humans. When he shakes you up, it's never to shame you, to hurt you or to belittle you. No, God is a good surgeon.

He cuts to heal. His words may burn, but only to burn away what is rotten. His words may shake, but only to sift away what is sinful. Because ultimately, his words aren't just words that shake. They are words that bring life. The psalmist continues in verse 9, the voice of Yahweh makes the deer give birth. Verse 10, Yahweh sits enthroned over the flood. Yahweh sits enthroned as king forever.

May Yahweh give strength to his people. May Yahweh bless his people with shalom. Peace. The psalmist is saying that yes, Yahweh's voice shakes, but it also makes the deer give birth. His voice brings forth gentle, fragile, new life. His voice gives strength to his people. blesses them with shalom. You see, this is why it's so important for God's words to be big and human words to be small, because his words not only confront us, they also heal us. They also bring life.

His voice speaks life into you by saying, you are my beloved son, or you are my beloved daughter. He can say that because Jesus died for your sins and rose again, and you have been united to Jesus such that when God sees you, he sees his one and only son. Make his words big, and they will strengthen you. They will bless you. They will protect your fragile life in Jesus. That is how God's words work after all. He shakes and he strengthens.