Taking What Is Not Ours - Psalm 24
The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein - Psalm 24:1
One way to define sin is taking as ours what belongs to God. And everything belongs to God. Gregory of Nyssa (335-396) said, “The foolish person counts as his own possession that which never actually belongs to him.” When we think of ourselves as owners, we are stealing from God. Only God truly owns because God has created every molecule that has ever existed. And only God ordains whatever happens (Eph 1:11).
God not only owns the heavens and the earth, he owns everything: our health, our minds, our time, our children, sex, jobs, everything. But we have difficulty thinking like that. This world is built on possessing and controlling, for our own purposes, what is not ours.
God’s ownership should cause us to repent and focus on the actual owner who provides all things for us to enjoy (1 Tim 6:17). In the middle of our pride and idolatry we can find pardon and peace by clinging to Jesus and not to the things he owns.
Good Father, creator and owner of everything, in so many ways I steal from you – I’m sorry. So often I find comfort in what I’m accumulating instead of trusting you. I’m a sinner in need of the Savior. Thank you Jesus for coming for me. Please change me. I want you live as if you are the owner. Amen
Song: Psalm 24