In Psalm 17: 15, David talked about being satisfied. Is satisfaction just another name for peace? This daily devotional looks at how the two terms are correlated when considering spiritual needs.
Nuggets
- Spiritual needs are focused on our spiritual condition for eternity.
- Prayer can help us become more satisfied with our situation as we turn it over to God’s control.
- David knew this world did not contain anything that would truly satisfy him.
- The satisfaction that we receive from God makes us desire for more.
Devotions in the Peace Leads to Tranquility series
How Are Satisfaction and Peace Related to Spiritual Needs?
If we are satisfied with things in our lives, is that what creates peace? I think not.
I think the only way we can be truly satisfied in life is if our relationship is right with God.
Let's Put It into Context
We’ve talked about peace several times. Peace is an inward tranquility or composure of the mind resulting from a balanced life with spiritual order, equity, and truth.
Glossary
Peace isn’t just the absence of conflict. It is a positive condition.
God wants disciples of Christ to experience peace in the midst of conflict. We can do that when we put our faith and trust in Him.
How Does Meeting Spiritual Needs Bring Us Peace?
“But I will see your face in righteousness; when I awake, I will be satisfied with your presence” (Ps. 17: 15 CSB)
Satisfaction promotes peace in our lives. This satisfaction is achieved when our spiritual needs are met.
Body believed that peace “… is the result of the satisfaction of spiritual needs.” That makes sense. If we know a need is not being met, we generally are not happy campers.
Resource
We get that need met — and we are good. But what exactly is spiritual needs?
At the end of life, many reflect on whether their spiritual needs have been met. The definition generally used is to determine whether we have had meaning and purpose in our lives. We want to make sure we have added value to society.
This is different than a disciple’s view of spiritual needs. We see spiritual needs summed up in the following verses.
• “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (Jn. 3: 16 ESV)
• “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Mt. 28: 19 ESV)
• “He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit” (Ti. 3: 5 ESV).
Spiritual needs aren’t focused on this world. They are focused on our spiritual condition for eternity.
If we limit the determination of our satisfaction to this life, we will miss the boat. This world is structured to be chaotic and divisive. We won’t find lasting peace.
Body kept us on track. He said that the it really isn’t the circumstances of this life that bring us peace.
What brings us peace is being in a right relationship with God. Once we get where we are supposed to be in our spiritual life, God provides the peace.
As with any relationship, our relationship with God ebbs and flows. That means it takes work. It takes work to search for and seek God.
Searching for and Seeking God
Hearing His Word (Rom. 10: 17).
Reading His Word (Rev. 1: 3).
Praying to Him (Heb. 4: 16).
Studying His Word (Ac. 17: 11).
Meditating on His Word (Ps. 1: 1-2).
Memorizing His Word (Ps. 119: 11).
We get peace because God has forgiven us of our sins. Forgiveness is when God pardons us when asked because we haves sinned. Sins are actions by humans that disobey God and break one of His reasonable, holy, and righteous laws and commandments, goes against a purpose He has for us, or follows Satan’s promptings.
But isn’t that what satisfaction is — “the payment through penance of the temporal punishment incurred by a sin (Merriam-Webster Dictionary)? Definition #2 is the “fulfillment of a need or want” bit.
Resource
A Prayer for Peace
“… my deadly enemies who surround me” (Ps. 17: 9 CSB)
If we look at the context in which Psalms 17: 15 is written, we see that it is a prayer. Our satisfaction increases, leading to peace, when we pray for satisfaction. David shows us that we need to pray for peace – even when under spiritual attack by enemies.
We would probably think that David should be having an easier ride. It does say that, “You have tested my heart; you have examined me at night. You have tried me and found nothing evil; I have determined that my mouth will not sin” (Ps. 17: 3 CSB). Shouldn’t passing the test mean he should have earned peace?
The psalmist is doing everything right. Why is he still surrounded by enemies?
Prayer can help us become more satisfied with our situation as we turn it over to God’s control. He is in control anyway – we just have to give up our quest for control.
Satisfaction in Service
“But I will see your face in righteousness …” (Ps. 17: 15 CSB)
David knew this world did not contain anything that would truly satisfy him. Instead, he couldn’t wait to see God in heaven. Our service doing God’s Will leads to the righteousness of God in Christ.
The only way David could do that is by being righteous. Righteous means we are free from sin because we are following God’s moral laws.
David’s aim was righteousness. Righteousness is the result of a solid relationship with God built by a sincere life of conscientious obedience to God’s laws and commandments.
We can find satisfaction in righteousness. Smith told us what religion satisfies.
- The intellect. If we think we have to understand everything, that means we use our minds to reason things out. Divine revelation can challenge us, satisfying our need to use our minds.
- The conscience. In What Does Made in His Image Mean?, we said that God made us to have the same perfect moral character that He does — holy and righteous. Ecclesiastes 7: 29 says, “But I did find this: God created people to be virtuous, but they have each turned to follow their own downward path” (NLT). If we have the conscience — though damage — like that of God, getting it fixed through righteousness should be very satisfying.
- The heart. Well, we aren’t robots. We definitely are emotional beings. We can not only think, but we can also feel. We are to feel love toward everyone.
Resource
So, in other words, we are only righteous in God. We can only become righteous when we put our trust in Christ. Our goal is the righteousness of God in Christ (II Cor. 5: 21).
But read that part of the verse again. “But I will see your face in righteousness …” (Ps. 17: 15 CSB).
David isn’t talking about here on earth. He is talking about when we are face to face with God. That will be when we are called home to Heaven. “Your eyes will behold the king in his beauty; they will see a land that stretches afar” (Isa. 33: 17 ESV).
We can’t focus on the satisfaction and peace of this world at the detriment of our eternal life. Jones warns us that “There is danger of mistaking dissatisfaction with our earthly lot for genuine repentance.” Just because we don’t like the state of the world today doesn’t mean we have been made right with God.
Resource
The only way we are made right with God is if we consciously ABCD. We have to make the decision to — and then follow through — with asking Him to forgive us.
We have to be a child of God in order to find the satisfaction David found. “… when I awake, I will be satisfied with your presence” (Ps. 17: 15 CSB).
God is enough. We make the decision that God is enough. He is enough now while we are on this earth. Heaven will be more than we can even imagine.
Satisfaction Brings the Desire for More
The satisfaction that we receive from God makes us desire for more.
Once we ABCD, we start navigating the Sanctification Road. Sanctification is the transformation of mind, body, and soul beginning with regeneration and ending with perfected state of spiritual wholeness or completeness. Regeneration is the change in us that God brings about when we go from being spiritually dead to spiritually alive.
The ABCDs of Salvation
If you have not become a believer in Christ, please read through the
Plan of Salvation and prayerfully consider what God is asking you to do.
A – admit our sins
B – believe His Son Jesus is our Redeemer
C – confess God as Sovereign Lord
D – demonstrate that commitment by making any changes needed in our lives to
live the way in which God has called us
The Disciple’s Job Description
As we go along, we are to desire for more righteousness. Why? Because righteousness is at the end of the Sanctification Road. Righteousness is the entrance to Heaven.
Look at how Binney described it. He wrote, “This man anticipates a waking up, — that there will be something like an abruptness, something like suddenness in the crisis; that all at once be will come face to face with God, into a fulness of the revelation of the Divine countenance, and a conformity to His image. His words may have been uttered by David without his understanding distinctly what was in them but feeling that there was some great idea suggested to him by that condition of his Divine life under which the Spirit was then influencing him.
Resource
Making the Connections
When we think about it, disciples of Christ should be satisfied now. Jay had it right. He wrote that we have “… His favour, with His goodness, with the fatness of His house.”
Resource
We don’t have to wait until Heaven to be satisfied. Yes, it will be infinitely more there. But we have God here.
Making the Connections to Self-Discipline
Oh, how many ways do we need self-discipline! We are talking faith, obedience, and prayer. We definitely need self-discipline there.
How Do We Apply This?
Yockney gave us a list of things to think about.
- Picture God on His throne clothed in His majesty.
- Pour over the Scriptures to know God’s mind.
- Think about what it took to create the plan of salvation.
- Look in the Scriptures to see the heart that God has for His people.
- List all the ways God shows His mercy to us.
- In as much detail as possible, write down how God has provided for you and how that made you feel.
- Consider what you would consider a moral person to be and see how God trumps that.
- Contemplate His wisdom.
- Be thankful that the Most High Sovereign God wants to be our Father.
We just have to remember that this life isn’t God’s priority. Eternal life is.
This life isn’t going to provide satisfaction. That is because Satan is ruling it and preparing it for the Antichrist.
We need to prepare for eternity.
Father God. We can only find satisfaction in You. We can only find peace in You. We can only find perfection in You. Help us to look to You. Forgive us when we focus on this world and its chaos. We look forward to eternity with You. Amen.
What do you think?
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Thank you for this in depth post and all of the resources here!
Brooke, You’re welcome. Thank you for the encouragement. Elaine
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