Year 5, Day 222: Psalms 85-86

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Forgiveness

• Forgiveness: Forgiveness is when our sins are absolved by God.  We do not deserve this forgiveness, but God grants it to us anyway.  We cannot earn forgiveness, but God gives it to us anyway.  As we are forgiven by God, He also asks us to forgive others.  In fact, Jesus Himself teaches us to pray for our forgiveness in the Lord’s Prayer when He says, “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.”

Psalm 85 is clearly a psalm that is about forgiveness.  It is written in a time and a place where the people have fallen away from God and are under His wrath.  They are in desperate need for God to see their repentance in order to display some forgiveness.

In such times, notice what the psalmist does.  He begins the psalm with a reminder of prior times in which God has been forgiving.  This is an incredible pattern to remember and bring into our own life.  Isn’t it easier to believe that something can happen to us in the future when we can look back and remember the list of times that it has happened in our past?  Isn’t it easier to believe in something when we can see it as a part of a predictable pattern and not a significant single event?  This is why so many psalms about forgiveness are also teaching psalms about the history of the Hebrew people.  When we know God’s pattern, we realize that we can indeed hope and know that God will remain true to His nature.  He will forgive us and bring us from wrath and into righteousness through His grace.

Psalm 86 also flirts with the idea of forgiveness.  In this psalm we return to David as the author, and he is quick to remind us that we are to lift up God and give Him praise all day long.  He remind us that we are to be in constant relationship with Him and call upon Him the whole day.  And in this context we hear David remind us that God is good and forgiving, abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon Him.  Here we remember what sometimes is easy to forget.  When we are in constant relationship with God, forgiveness is easier.  When we are in constant relationship with God we will be more reflective inside.  We’ll know more about ourselves.  We’ll see our faults more quickly.  We’ll see God’s will brighter.  We’ll be quick to repent when we stray off the path and God will be quicker to forgive because the consequence of our sin will be less grave.  If we want to know God’s forgiveness more, it just makes sense that we should be in communion with Him all day long.

<><