“Many, O LORD my God, are Your wonderful works which You have done; and Your thoughts toward us cannot be recounted to You in order; if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered” (Psalm 40:5 NKJV, emphasis added).

In this psalm, David also speaks about the works and thoughts of God; but in this verse he stresses an important aspect of those thoughts by telling us that they are “toward us” (ESV, NKJV, etc.), in other words, about us and regarding us – for our benefit and good.  And David also tells us that God’s thoughts about us are so extensive they cannot be numbered. 

Another verse that ties directly to this concept is one we know well – Jeremiah 29:11. Although this verse is frequently translated “For I know the plans I have for you ….” (Jeremiah 29:11 NIV, etc.), it uses the same Hebrew word, machashebeth, that is translated “thoughts” in the scriptures we have quoted from the Psalms – and it is translated that way in versions such as the NKJV: “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Machshebeth is also translated “thought” by the NIV and by many other versions in verses such as “…On that day thoughts will come into your mind” (Ezekiel 38:10, etc.).

The Scriptures tell us quite a lot about the thoughts of God, and much of what they say stresses the fact that he has innumerable thoughts “toward” or about us and for our good.  Now, if we believe we are to strive to learn and live the character of God in this life (Matthew 5:48), to become more like him in every way we can (Ephesians 5:1), to think like him (Philippians 2:5, etc.), we might well look with particular interest at what these verses say. If, as David tells us, God’s thoughts toward us cannot be counted, we might want to ask how many of our thoughts are toward others, for their benefit.  
 
This is not a small question.  You may have heard the expression “out of sight, out of mind,” and as we go about our normal every-day lives it is true that we naturally spend most of our time thinking about our own work, needs, problems, goals, etc.  The fact is, we have to train our minds to consistently think about others and their needs.  Most of us certainly do not have “innumerable” thoughts about others; but if we desire to become more like God, that should be our goal.  The more we love others, the more we think about them. That is why God’s thoughts for us cannot be numbered, and why we should be thinking more and more about others.

Although this idea is not as directly expressed in the New Testament, it lies behind several statements we read there. For example, the apostle Paul tells us: “Brothers and sisters, stop thinking like children. In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be adults” (1 Corinthians 14:20).  In the context in which this verse occurs (speaking in tongues), it is clear that Paul is discussing thinking about how we should strive to profit others rather than just elevate ourselves through our gifts (vss. 19-21).

Paul talks more about thought and thinking than any other New Testament writer, but it is sometimes easy to miss his point.  When he tells us: “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things” (Philippians 4:8), he is not just talking about praiseworthy things, but about praiseworthy goals and behaviors.

The apostle Peter writes something similar in his second epistle: “Dear friends, this is now my second letter to you. I have written both of them as reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking” (2 Peter 3:1).  These exhortations go beyond just thinking thoughts about positive uplifting things – they are urging us to use our minds to think thoughts like God does. The examples we saw in the Old Testament show we should be  thinking frequently and consistently about others –  about how we can encourage, uphold, help, and serve them.
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We know that Christians should be “walking the walk” as well as “talking the talk.” We should also remind ourselves that we should be “thinking the thoughts” –  not just positive, uplifting thoughts, but concrete, real, and continual thoughts about others and how we can help them.

“In your hand are power and might, so that none is able to withstand you” (2 Chronicles 20:6).
 

We have all heard the saying “power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely,” and sadly, experience often shows the truth in that old bit of wisdom.  But if it is true, what about God – who is truly all-powerful (2 Chronicles 20:6) at a scale that no human can even begin to grasp (Job 26:7-14)?  If power corrupts – especially absolute power –  why is it that God is somehow unaffected by this fact?

Some atheists have presumed to know the answer to that question by proclaiming that this fact disproves the existence of God, as his very nature would be compromised by his own power. But we might well reply to this argument with the words of Jesus himself: “…You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God” (Matthew 29:29).

The Scriptures show that the power of God does not in any way corrupt him because it is transformed by another equally inherent aspect of God’s nature –  his love.  In fact, the Scriptures clearly record the fact that while God has infinite power, he is love (1 John 4:8). What we are always overrides what we have, and this is certainly true in the case of the power of God.
 
We continually get glimpses of this control of power by love throughout the earthly life of Jesus, the Son of God.  We see it from the very beginning of his ministry in the temptations in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11) by his refusal to misuse the power he had, and we see it at many other times such as when the disciples urged him to bring fire down on a city of the Samaritans (Luke 9:54) or to use power to avert his own death (Matthew 16:21-23). 
 
But these are all examples of Jesus not misusing the power he had at his disposal. Even more telling are the times when Jesus did use the great power he had – in miracles and signs given in love to help others.  Even on the rare occasions when Jesus claimed privileges for himself, such as the right to use something based on his true identity, we find his use of power was entirely for love. This was either love of God, as when he claimed the right to use the donkey that carried him into Jerusalem in order to fulfill the word of God (Matthew 21:1-11), or love of others, as when he claimed the right to use the upper room where he expounded truth to his disciples and washed their feet (Matthew 26:17-18 and John 13:1-20).  In all these instances, Jesus used the power he had in service to others.

Because of these examples, we can know that God’s power does not in any way corrupt his perfect nature. The potential for misuse of power is transformed by his perfect love. To turn our original statement around,we can say that “love transforms power and absolute love transforms absolute power.”

This truth flows over into the lives of those who are truly led by the Spirit of God. As the apostle Paul wrote: “For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline” (2 Timothy 1:7, emphasis added). The power of God – the power he gives – is transformed by love and controlled by self-discipline.

Doubtless that is why Paul also described his desire that believers “May have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ” (Ephesians 3:18).   With God, the expression of power is never separated from love, and the two should never be separated in our lives, either. 

​It’s a beautiful scripture, but it is so often quoted out of context (for example, on social media) that we get used to it and often miss the depth of the promise.  In context, God not only promises to watch over Jacob, but also makes a number of other promises to the patriarch.  Although the words were spoken to a specific individual, many other scriptures show it is reasonable to take them as our own if we, like Jacob, are walking with God and allowing him to work his purpose in our lives.

But if we are going to apply these words to our own relationship with God, why not spend some time thinking about the fullness of what they show.  Rather than allowing ourselves to see the scripture as just a group of words with a single positive message of divine protection or care, why not break them down and focus on the fact that they contain not one general promise, but four very specific ones:

(1) God’s presence (“I am with you”), (2) God’s preservation (“I will watch over you”), (3) God’s restoration (“I will bring you back”), (4) God’s promises (“what I have promised you”).

Take a little time to think on what each of these promises can mean in your life – if you feel they apply to you, why not apply them fully!