This message beginning in Ps 5:12 is about finding Favor with God. It should be of great importance to us that we find favor with the Lord.
Samuel found favor with the Lord, 1 Sam 2:26. He was the greatest judge that Israel ever had. Mary found favor with the Lord, Lk 1:28-20, and she became the mother of our Lord Jesus Christ. Favor with God is that significant.
If there is any way that we can be in favor with God, we should make this our priority above all else. Is there any way that we can have favor with the Lord? Yes.
The Lord will bless those who are righteous with favor, Ps 5:12
The way to be righteous with God is to be saved by the Lord Jesus Christ. When you are saved you go from being a child of the devil to being a child of God. You instantly find favor with God when you have the righteousness of Jesus Christ in you. You are given eternal life, all the divine power of God, and a home in heaven for eternity.
The Lord will bless those who hold to mercy and truth with favor, Prov 3:3-4
The Pharisees were on the outs with Jesus from the get-go of his earthly ministry. The reason is that they wanted to have favor with the Lord through their sacrifices rather than through his mercy. And they wanted to adhere to their tradition rather than his truth.
Prov 16:6 says, “By mercy and truth iniquity is purged”. God is not going to be favorable to your sacrifices and your tradition. When you approach God according to the truth of his words and seek his mercy according the gift of Jesus Christ, you will be in favor with him. It is the couplet of mercy and truth that brings you into favor with God.
The Lord will bless those who find wisdom with favor, Prov 8:35
Read carefully through Prov 8 to see how God views and values his wisdom. It is far greater than silver, gold, rubies, and any other desirable thing in the earth. When a man loves God’s wisdom above all other things in the earth and when he seeks God’s wisdom early, God blesses him with favor.
If you had a rough past or if you were horribly ashamed of your past like I was, you can’t imagine God giving you favor. Yet, when you love his words and seek his wisdom, God brings you into favor with him and all those things of the past become nothing.
The Lord will bless those who are good with favor, Prov 12:2
When you ARE good rather than when you are ACTING good, God is favorable to you. When we gather together as a church, we are all on our best behavior. It is easy to act good around each other. But God is not interested in how good you act; he is interested in how good you are. When his goodness makes you good, you have favor with God.
Conclusion: if you aren’t saved, you are currently a child of the devil. If you will get saved today, God will make you a child of God and accept you in the beloved. If you are saved but you are not in favor with God, then hold to mercy and truth, seek and find God’s wisdom, and be good. He will bless you with favor.