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Psalm 15:4c - We Must Keep Our Promises To Have Fellowship With God.

Psalm 15:4c; We Must Keep Our Promises To Have Fellowship With 
God. 

Psalm 15:4c (KJV) He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth 
not. 

Psalm 15:4c (NRSV) who stand by their oath even to their hurt;

Psalm 15:4c (NAB) Who keeps an oath despite the cost, 

Psalm 15:4c (NJB) who stands by an oath at any cost, 

Psalm 15:4c (GWT) The one who makes a promise and does not break 
it, 

Psalm 15:4c (MSG) Keep your word even when it costs you, 

Perhaps next to Ps. 23, Ps. 15 is the best known and most 
generally appreciated of the psalms. It is called The Good Citizen and 
God's Gentleman, and is the most complete statement of the ideal man 
to be found in the Psalter. The Talmud says that the 613 
commandments of the Pentateuch are all summarized in this psalm. [SDA 
Commentary] 

Instruction to those who wish to have access to God. [NIV SB]

Not sacrifices or ritual purity (as among the religions of the 
ancient Near East) but moral righteousness gives access to the Lord God 
[NIV SB] 

Only the person who lives a righteous life has fellowship with 
the LORD. [The 365-Day Devotional Commentary] 

God calls his people to be morally upright, and, in this psalm, 
he gives us ten standards to determine how we are doing. We live 
among evil people whose standards and morals are eroding. Our 
standards for living should not come from our evil society, but from God. 
[Life Application SB] 

This simple description provides a good checklist against which 
to measure ourselves. And what a promise! "He who does these things 
will never be shaken." [The 365-Day Devotional Commentary] 

Vss 3-4 Words are powerful, and how you use them reflects on 
your relationship with God. Perhaps nothing so identifies Christians 
as their ability to control their speech--speaking the truth, 
refusing to slander, and keeping oaths (promises). Watch out for what you 
say. (See James 3:1-12 for more on the importance of controlling your 
tongue.) [Life Application SB] 

Vs 4c To his own hurt. When he has made a promise or has entered 
into a contract that may turn out to his own hurt, he still remains 
true to his pledged word. "His word is as good as his bond." [SDA 
Commentary] 

What are the responsibilities of a citizen of America? (Answer: 
to protect, defend, and abide by the Constitution of the United 
States.) 
What are the responsibilities of a citizen of heaven? (Answer: 
to protect, defend, and abide by the Word of God.) 
Psalm 15 resembles in miniature form the Christian's 
Constitution, for in it you will find the demands incumbent upon those who 
would call heaven their home. It provides a conduct manual to guide 
you into activities consistent with your citizenship. 
There are eleven parts to the psalmist's answer, and they touch 
on virtually every area of daily life: integrity in your speech and 
conduct (v. 2), use of your tongue (v. 3), attitude toward sin and 
worship (v. 4), faithfulness in keeping your promises (v. 4), use of 
money (v. 5). In short, your fellowship with God is vitally affected 
by your fellowship of the precepts contained in his Word. Both are 
essential if you are to have a heart for God. 
Now bring the psalm down to where you live and work. Every time 
you encounter a "anyone who ....." in Psalm 15, substitute the words 
"Do I ......?" Let the mirror of God's Word reflect back to you an 
accurate picture of your conduct as a citizen of heaven ....... and show you 
where an activity or attitude needs to come under the King's control. 
[Daily Walk Bible] 

Guidance from the Psalms (Ps. 15)
I was teaching a short, two-day course at Princeton Seminary's 
continuing education center, when I realized how much I did not want to 
come back the next summer. 
Several months earlier I'd said that I would come to teach a 
two-week summer course. But as I flew east from my Phoenix home, I felt 
how much I missed my family. And I remembered about all the writing 
I had to do during those summer months. The thought of two weeks 
away during the next summer became almost unbearable. 
So I decided, the last day of my short visit, that I'd tell the 
seminary that I just couldn't make it. 
But that morning, my daily psalm "just happened" to be Psalm 15. 
As I read, one verse seemed to jump off the page and confront me. 
The blameless man "keeps his oath even when it hurts" (v. 4). I knew 
then that I had to return. 
Usually when I read the Psalms it's for personal enrichment 
and/or worship. They lift up my thoughts and my heart to the LORD. But 
now and then God has a personal word of guidance for me in a psalm. 
And when God speaks, there's nothing to do but to listen and obey. 
[The 365-Day Devotional Commentary] 

If God gives himself to us in promises, we must give ourselves 
to him in obedience. [Daily Walk Bible mod.]