Psalm 5:12For You, Lord, will bless the [uncompromisingly] righteous [him who is upright and in right standing with You]; as with a shield You will surround him with goodwill (pleasure and favour).
The word favour also means grace and this favour is extremely powerful. Here the psalmist says that the Lord will surround, encircle a person with favour if he is in right standing with God.
How can we be righteous in God? Simply by receiving Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour as mentioned in Romans 3:21-22 But, now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile.
Let us examine, what favour from God can do to our lives. We all know the very familiar story of Exodus, the Israelites were liberated from years of slavery in Egypt, under the leadership of Moses, by the strong arm of the Lord and now the Lord said in Exo 3:21 And I will grant this people favour and respect in the sight of the Egyptians; therefore, it shall be that when you go, you will not go empty-handed. In Exo 11:3 And the Lord gave the people favour in the sight of the Egyptians. It was God who gave favour and ensured that His people would not leave empty handed from Egypt but, be compensated for all the years of slavery.
Esther 2:17 “And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained grace and favour in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti“. Esther was an orphan, a Jew, raised by her cousin Mordecai, when God’s unusual favour came upon her an unnoticed young woman who had no chance of anything great, had special preference, became a powerful queen of Persia and came to prominence, thanks to favour.
Genesis 39:3 And, his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made all he did [a]to prosper in his hand. 4 So Joseph found favour in his sight, and served him. Then he made him overseer of his house, and all that he had he put [b]under his authority. When Joseph’s brothers sold him to the Ishmaelite’s, Potiphar an Egyptian, an officer of the Pharaoh, bought him and noticed that Joseph was successful in anything he did. The secret was that the Lord was with him, and he had favour in God’s eyes thereby he had favour in the eyes of Potiphar. He set him as overseer over his house and all that he had. Later Joseph is promoted to be ruler over Egypt, and the Pharaoh’s house and his people, he became the Prime Minister of Egypt in Genesis 41:40. God’s favour promoted Joseph, gave him honour and wealth.
Psalm 30:5 says For His anger lasts only a moment, but his favour lasts a lifetime; weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.
Psalm 84:11For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favour and honour; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless.
Let us strive to walk uprightly with the Lord, let us ask the Holy Spirit to help us to do so. It’s His desire to bless us not one good thing will He withhold from us, His children. Amen!!!
Sol.Lalitha Menon