Year 8, Day 190: Psalm 44

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The first half of this psalm seems to be in line with the other maskils of Korah that we’ve read thus far.  It is through the Lord that we accomplish anything.  The psalmist truly knows where the source of life, power, and protection resides.  It isn’t us, it is God.  He is the one who does wonderful things through us.  That much is clear.

However, when we get to the second half of this psalm it takes on a much more ominous tone.  The psalmist has seen his people fail.  He has seen them fall in battle.  He has seen them live under the persecution of others.  He has seen them seemingly rejected by God.

What’s worse is that the psalmist can’t understand why.  From his perspective, the people aren’t falling away.  They aren’t rejecting God.  They aren’t turning to other gods.  They haven’t broken the covenant.  Had any of these things happened, the psalmist would accept the fate and acknowledge their worthiness to receive such a fate.

This can tell us at least two things.  Not being in the context, it is impossible to know which is correct.  It is possible that the people are being faithful.  If this is correct, then God simply hasn’t decided to move against the evil in the world around His people.  God could be giving the other people time to grow, mature, repent, or hang themselves and deserve true judgment.

More likely, however, I think the psalmist is a bit blind.  How many of us can honestly say that we’ve kept God’s commandments?  How many of us can say that we don’t chase other gods in our life?  Can we really believe that we are innocent in every way?

Not being there, I really don’t know what is going on.  But this psalm reminds me that I have a firm belief about repentance.  When things go poorly in my life, my first instinct should be to look within.  What is going on within my life that isn’t worthy of God?  When I find such a thing, I should focus my life upon repenting over that and asking for God’s forgiveness.  In such humbleness will God’s presence truly be found.

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Year 8, Day 189: Psalm 43

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Psalm 43 continues the tone of what we began yesterday.  We can get a sense that these psalms are a matched set because they contain the exact same phrase. “Why are you downcast, oh my soul?”  Here is another psalm dealing with the dichotomy of knowing the human existence but believing in a God who is creator and desires relationship with us.

In the middle of the psalm we get a clue about how to get past our misery.  The psalmist asks God to send him His light and His truth.  The psalmist asks to be led back into the presence of God.  Don’t miss the directionality of what’s being said here.

So often when Christians talk about faith we talk about our walk, our devotional life, and our worship life. We take a wonderful Christianity and cheapen it to the level of every other religion.  Religion is about human beings working their way into righteousness.  This psalm tells us about the difference between religion and Christianity.  God comes to us; we don’t come to Him.

The psalmist asks to be led to God’s presence.  The psalmist knows that we have no chance to work our way up to God.  We cannot find Him on our own.  He sends out His light to shine the path to Him.  He sends out His truth to be our guide.

We still must follow.  It’s not like we have no responsibility; but ours is a responsibility in response rather than in initiation.  God comes to us and leads us into relationship.

That brings me back full circle.  Why is the soul downcast?  Perhaps the soul has forgotten to look for the light and listen for the truth.  Perhaps the soul has become so focused on its own self-worth that it forgot about the most important action: God’s initial action.  When we forget God’s important act of initiating, it is easy for our soul to become downcast.

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Year 8, Day 188: Psalm 42

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Psalm 42 is not a psalm of David.  Once accustomed to the psalms of David, the psalms that are not of David are noticeable.  The psalm may have a similar theme or teaching, but it gets there a different way.  The vocabulary is different.  The tone is different.

The teaching in this maskil of the sons of Korah is similar to that which David speaks.  This psalm is about the disparity between the reality of existence and the hopefulness that should be found in God.  It opens with the familiar expression, “as the deer pants for water, so my soul pants for you, God.”  The psalmist clearly knows God and knows the salvation that comes from Him.  The psalmist understands relationship with God and the joy that it brings.

Quickly, however, the psalm turns to the interrogation of the soul.  If we know God, know His salvation, know His redemption, and know His restoration, then why is the soul downcast?  Why is it focused on the enemies and their taunts?  Why is the soul unable to look past its fear?  Why is the soul so quick to feel forgotten by God?

This is one of the dynamics that is at the core of the human existence.  We know the potential that life has!  We also know the reality of life when we introduce our own sinfulness and the sinfulness of others.  When we recognize this disparity, we tend to accuse God for allowing it to exist when we should be turning to Him for hope.  We allow our souls to become downcast when we should spend our time looking for hope.

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Year 8, Day 187: Psalm 41

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There is an interesting trend that becomes quite clear when reading the psalms.  More often than not, the people in the psalms mentioned in connection with God have a few specific things in common.  They are the poor, the downtrodden, the outcast, the persecuted.  It is rare that we hear positive mention of the rich, well-to-do, and powerful.

It think there is a very plain reason for this.  Those who need God seek Him.  Those who seek Him find Him.  He does not hide from those who seek Him honestly and humbly.  But one must desire to seek Him.  If one does not live a life that has need of Him, why would someone seek Him?

I think there is a deeper level to this fact that we should discover.  Remember that the most prolific psalmist was David.  He was a king.  He was the greatest Hebrew of his time.  He is the one who is writing about the poor, the downtrodden, and outcast.

I think there are two linked reasons for this.  First, David is a man after God’s own heart.  He acknowledges his failings and humbly presents himself before God.  Although he is king of the Hebrew people, he’s not out of touch with his humanity and his failings.  When David thinks about himself, he sees himself as a part of the poor and outcast.  That can teach us a good bit about leadership.

The second reason that we hear so much about the poor and outcast in David’s psalms is because of his humble beginnings.  Remember that David was a shepherd.  He was the youngest of his family, his brothers all growing up and becoming men before he did.  He would understand the life of the poor; he would certainly understand the life of the oppressed.  If we want humble leaders, it makes sense to look from among people who understand humble beginnings.

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Year 8, Day 186: Philippians 4

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In the final chapter of Philippians, Paul gives us his final pieces of advice.  His crowning piece of advice is to rejoice in the Lord.  Our relationship with God should give us reason to be joyful.  After all, if God promises life eternal, what temporary adversity can harm that joy?  Of course, that doesn’t mean we can be happy all the time.  Things will come up in life that will make us unhappy or angry.  But such times should be fleeting.  Our normal status quo should be an air of rejoicing.

What can our attitude of rejoicing lead to?  First of all, our rejoicing should lead us to less anxiety.  If we are with the Lord, and the Lord can grant eternal life to us, what have we to be concerned about?  Again, there will be a few small things that do make us anxious.  We can’t help being anxious from time to time.  But that should not be our standard feeling.  Anxiety, when it comes, should be a fleeting feeling instead of one that dominates us.

The second effect is that we should have peace.  If the Lord is where our trust resides, what can the world throw at us that the Lord cannot bring us through?  Sure, we won’t have perfect lives.  Even Jesus, the only sinless man, was crucified!  God can bring us through our troubles.  That should give us a peace that passes all understanding.

Because of this, we should put our mind on the things that are good and pure.  In other words, this goes back to the end of yesterday’s passage.  We aren’t saved by our works, but our works should give evidence of our salvation.  If we have an abundance of joy, if we have the ability to let go of anxiety, if we have a peace that passes all understanding, why would we not desire to focus on the good and pure things of God?  Why would we not want to practice such things? 

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Year 8, Day 185: Philippians 3

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Paul tells his audience to be careful of certain people as we read through this passage.  Please note who it is that Paul warns others about.  Paul doesn’t caution them about hanging out with worldly folks.  After all, had Paul said that, to whom would we take the Gospel?  No, Paul warns his audience about people who say they are religious but have their mind focused on the wrong things.  Paul is concerned that people will start thinking that they have earned their salvation, not that their salvation is a gift.

This is why Paul lists all of the things in his past.  Reading through that list with an eye to what would impress a first-century Jew, Paul has it all.  He’s got a good biological heritage, he’s been readily trained in religion, and he’s followed the law his whole life.

However, Paul then says all of this is actually counted as a loss.  These things don’t make him better, they actually have the potential to be a hindrance!  Such things lead to pride and arrogance.  Such things often lead us away from appreciation and dependency upon God, not towards it.  Salvation comes through the righteousness of Christ and the grace of God, not through our ability to earn it.

Paul thus warns his audience to be wary of people who tell you that certain things have to be true in order to be saved.  Such people might be: people who claim you have to be baptized in a certain way, people who claim you have to say the right things, people who claim you have to part of a certain denomination, etc.  The reality is that we are saved because God loves us and in that love Jesus died for our sake.  We are saved because of Christ, not because of anything we do.

However, this doesn’t give us permission to live as we like.  While Paul makes it clear that none of us will be saved because of what we do, he also wants to be sure we know that we do need to imitate Christ.  In fact, he tells us to imitate other people who are imitating Christ!  What we do is important, but not because it helps to save us or make us more appealing to God.  What we do is important because it shows our love for God.  What we do because a part of our witness.  It because a part of our thought process.  What we do, shows who we are.  If our heart truly is God’s, then our actions should display that reality.

We aren’t saved because of what we do.  We should be careful of anyone who makes us think our actions do influence our salvation.  But while we aren’t saved by what we do, we should also realize that what we do should reflect our salvation.  That’s what Paul is getting at.

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Year 8, Day 184: Philippians 2

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Philippians 2 takes us right back to where we left off yesterday.  If our focus is others and their relationship with God, how can we act selfishly?  How can we live lives making others angry, inviting others to sin, or doing other things with ourselves at the core of the gain?

Then Paul makes it plain that he is speaking the truth.  Look at God Himself.  What is His example?  God sent His Son to us.  Yet, His Son didn’t come here to boss us around and show us how much better He was.  His Son came to point us to the Father and then die for our sake so that we can get to the Father.  God Himself is a God of self-sacrifice.  He didn’t do things with Himself in mind, He did things with others in mind.

In the example of Christ, we see that Paul is right.  If we are following Christ, we should be like Him.  If we are like Him, we should live like Him.  We should think of others.  We should do things that bring people closer to the Father, not drive them further from Him.

There’s another dynamic to what’s been discussed.  Not only can we look into the hearts of others by looking into their actions, but even more importantly we can see into our own hearts.  When we stop and see what we are actually doing, it gives us the ability to see into our heart as God sees us.

When I look through my actions and into my heart, what do I see?  Do I see a person who is primarily about manipulating others so that I get what I want?  Do I see a person who doesn’t care about others and does whatever it takes to push them away so I am left alone?  Or do I see a person who embraces the needs and concerns of the people around him in order to show the love of God as deeply as possible?

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Year 8, Day 183: Philippians 1

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Today we take a short jaunt into the New Testament and the letters of Paul. In the opening chapter, we can see the deep theme of mission at work.  Clearly, Paul has come and worked among the Philippians in the past.  He is also suffering persecution because of his ministry.  That’s the past and present of this passage.

Look at Paul’s endgame, though.  What’s the purpose and point of Paul’s ministry?  What is his focus for the ministry?  What is the critical value that Paul is trying to accomplish?

Paul’s ultimate focus is what happens when Christ returns.  He wants to make sure that when Christ does return that the Philippians are still walking with Christ.  For Paul, salvation is the endgame.  Paul wants to know that the Philippians will be pure and blameless in the presence of God.  Naturally, this purity comes through Christ, not through their own works.

That’s a very significant lesson to learn, because that focus can help us at every moment in life.  If the relationship between God and the other person is my focus, then I should naturally avoid many sins.  If I truly am concerned about my wife and her relationship with God, why would I ever do anything that angers her?  If I truly am concerned about the people around me and their relationship with God, why would I ever do anything selfish such as speeding on the roads or behaving selfishly in the grocery store? 

The point is that we can learn much about the heart of a person by watching their actions.  When a person acts only for themselves and what’s best for them, their focus shines brightly.  In such a case, the person’s focus is not God and His relationship with others.  This is why Paul says that he hopes the love of the Philippians abounds more and more with knowledge and discernment.

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Year 8, Day 182: Psalm 40

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Psalm 40 is a great psalm to follow the ones from yesterday.  Listen to the confidence in the words of David.  David knows that the Lord will not withhold mercy.  The Lord will preserve him.  The Lord is David’s help and deliverer.

As I often do, remember the context of David’s life.  Here is a man who has obvious places of sinfulness in his life.  He has his fair share of character flaws.  He knows his weaknesses.  He’s a man after God’s own heart, sure.  But he’s far from perfect.

For me, the heart of this conversation is how David can be so confident in God’s mercy when he’s done what he’s done.  We’re not talking about a garden variety liar here.  David is an adulterer and a murderer.  Those are fairly serious issues.  How can David be so confident in the midst of his sin?

I think the ability to have these words in this psalm comes from the lesson discovered in the last two psalms.  David can be confident in God’s mercy because he isn’t running from his sin.  David knows God will save him because he is honest with God and himself about his sin.

This is a great perspective to realize.  Only when we acknowledge our shortcomings can we improve upon them.  Only when we accept our guilt can we accept its absolution.  David can speak confidently in these verses because of his honest relationship with the Lord.

David can speak of the greatness of God because of his openness.  David can witness to the love of God because he’s been able to experience it.  David can share news of the deliverance of God with others because he’s known deliverance from his own sinfulness.  The very joy and assurance that is woven masterfully through this psalm originates in David’s honestly about his own sinfulness.

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Year 8, Day 181: Psalms 38-39

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Psalm 38 gives us a psalmist in a low spot in their life.  Clearly the psalmist is feeling attacked, perhaps entrapped, and certainly a bit on the helpless side.  In the midst of his pain, the psalmist asked not to be rebuked by God.

I’m not sure about anyone else, but I’ve been there.  I know the feeling well when something goes wrong and I realize my mistakes.  There is a sense of hopelessness when I recognize just how poorly I’ve acted or spoken.  Sometimes the feeling comes when I’ve been selfish and evil; sometimes those feelings come when I’ve been clueless about what I’ve been doing.  This feeling can come when I have been both intentionally and unintentionally involved in wrongdoing.

In that context, there is something I love about what the psalmist never does.  He never makes excuses.  He never tries to deny his involvement.  He never tries to pin it off on someone else and give away the blame.  The psalmist looks to God and acknowledges his wrongdoing.  He owns that his unhealthy life is due to his own sin.  He acknowledges that he is drowning in his own iniquities.  He confesses his sin.

This is maturity in action.  Everyone makes mistakes; some mistakes are intentional and others are not.  Everyone has sin in their life.  Everyone gets caught.  How we recognize maturity is when someone owns their error instead of trying to circumvent it.  That is what this psalm has for us today.

We can’t possibly know the whole context of the psalms and why they were written.  Psalm 39 seems to be about a time when David said something he shouldn’t have.  Now he is dealing with the consequences of his indiscretion.

What is the error about which David is guilty?  He tried to hold his tongue, but as he did his anger got the best of him.  In his anger, he lashed out with his tongue.  He said something he shouldn’t have said.  Now he is paying the price for it, because his enemies have gathered around.  As with the earlier psalm, I know that feeling, too.

Look at when the knowledge of his sin takes David.  David tells the Lord that his hope is in Him.  Redemption lies with God.  There’s no need to hide from our sin or place the blame on other people.  The reality is that the quickest way through our sin and into restoration is through acknowledgement and ownership of our misdeeds and turning to the Lord for redemption.  Our hope is in the Lord, not ourselves!  When we try to blame other people or try to hide from our sin, all we do is run from the possibility of redemption!

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Year 8, Day 180: Psalms 36-37

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There is a very simple lesson to be learned in Psalm 36.  When we have unchecked evil within us – even seemingly harmless evil like laziness or the occasional white lie – we get haughty and proud.  We start to think we are invincible.  We flatter ourselves and think we won’t be found out.  The evil and deceit grows, opening up paths for greater misdeed.

On the other hand, the presence of the Lord and His ways has the opposite effect.  We can take refuge in His love.  We can learn by His precepts.  He is our fountain of life.  He prevents the arrogance that comes with sin from grabbing a foothold within our existence.

Psalm 37 continues these themes and contrasts the righteous with the wicked.  There is a phenomenal piece of wisdom found amidst the comparisons of good and evil, wisdom that is worth bringing out.  What is the advice that David gives to the righteous?  Be still and wait for the Lord.  Don’t worry about those who prosper in their own evil schemes.

This is a huge angle to consider as we contemplate the choices in our life.  How often does it seem like the wicked prosper?  How easy is it to become envious of those who seem to win even though they clearly do wrong?  How typical it can be to wonder where justice is in the world and why we should do right especially when nobody is looking.

We are told to be patient and wait upon the Lord.  In other words, human beings see the now and focus on the present.  God sees the future and focuses on the eternal.  Where we see evil prospering, God sees a long chain of evil getting ready to destroy itself.  Where we see unrepentant sin prosper, God sees arrogance and pride growing before the fall.  In those moments when we are forced to choose between good and evil, we are told to wait upon the Lord.  We are told to see through His eyes and hear His wisdom.  We are told not to fret when we see evil prospering, as if we should give it no heed whatsoever.

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Year 8, Day 179: Psalms 34-35

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Psalms 34 and 35 give us two sides of the same coin.  David wants us to praise God for upholding the cause of the righteous.  He also wants us to praise God for punishing the cause of the unrighteous.

Within this greater context we can see a few neat working assumptions that David uses.  For example, look at those who are within God’s favor and who will listen to David’s words.  The humble hear and are glad.  The poor find salvation in Him. Those who fear the Lord have no lack.  Children listen and are taught. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and crushed.  There’s a trend here.  God is a God of the oppressed, those in need, and those who live humbly.

On the other hand, look at those with whom God contends.  There are those who seek the lives of others. There are the ones who devise evil schemes. There are those who act without cause. There are the malicious witnesses.  There are people who repay good with evil.  There are people who rejoice when another stumbles.  There are people who do not speak words of peace.

The dichotomy is pretty easy to see.  People who live humbly and do not take away from the community around them can find God – even find themselves within God’s embrace!  People who think more of themselves than they should and seek to lift themselves up above those around them often find themselves opposed by God.

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Year 8, Day 178: Psalms 32-33

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In this pair of psalms today, we can see a trio of messages.  To start, take the middle of psalm 33.  There is a tendency among human beings to place trust in things that are not really able to fulfill our trust.  We trust in warhorses and chariots.  Today, we might speak of trusting in the absolute protection of our military.  Human beings tend to trust that their house can protect them.  Often, such as in the face of a thunderstorm, it can.  But what can a house do in the face of a sinkhole, a tornado, or even a fire?  Human beings like to think that gold and money can save them.  While we can spend money on needs like food or clothing or even on desires like entertainment and transportation, the truth is that no amount of money can buy happiness.  Human beings like to search for places for us to place our trust.  There is only one sure place for our trust to find fulfillment.

That brings us to a second theme in these psalms: God.  God is where our trust should reside.  He is the one who saves us.  He is the one who can protect us.  He is the one who can bring us into eternal dwelling with Him.  He gives good counsel while frustrating the schemes of mankind.  He created this world and is master over it.  There is no better place to store our hope than within Him.

What then, should we do?  Our response is found best by turning to Psalm 32.  In the face of a God who is capable of securing our hope, we should acknowledge our wrongdoing before God.  We should then turn in our ways and embrace the ways of the Lord.  Then we may truly enter into the relationship with Him that He provides.  We can glorify His name.  We can learn from His teachings.  We can know His love.  We can glorify in His name.

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Year 8, Day 177: Psalms 30-31

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In Psalms 30 and 31 we can see a neat contrast between God and humankind.  Before I go too far, though, understand that I am speaking in generalities.  Naturally there will be specific moments of human existence that do not conform to what I say.  There are exceptions to every generic rule.

In Psalm 30, we hear about why the Lord should be extolled.  His anger is fleeting, but His favor lasts a lifetime.  He makes us strong when His face shines upon us.  He is merciful.  He turns our mourning into dancing.  He clothes us in gladness.  These are reasons to praise Him.

In contrast, we hear about David’s experience with humanity.  Human beings conspire against David and seek to entrap him.  They want what he has.  The people around him turn him into a reproach.  They turn him into an object of dread, causing others to disassociate from him.  They whisper behind his backs, scheming against him and making him as dead.  They lie in their pride.  They try to cut David off from his Lord.

God is often spoken of as holy.  In the Bible, holy means different.  These psalms show us why God is holy.  Whereas human beings are generally self-centered and self-seeking – even the best among us have moments of selfishness, God is looking for our edification.  God desires to lift us up.  God desires to bring us to a better place.  Human beings desire to sacrifice others for their benefit; God desires to sacrifice Himself for our benefit.

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Year 8, Day 176: Psalms 28-29

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Psalms 28 and 29 give us a great one-two punch today for meditating on the relationship between human and divine.  You could also think of this dynamic as eternal versus finite.  How do human beings relate to an eternal divine being?  Why do human beings relate to an eternal divine being?

If we look at Psalm 28, we see that the psalm begins with a return to the idea of fear of the Lord.  David begins the psalm by asking God to not drag him away with the wicked.  He doesn’t want to get lumped up with those whose hearts are not inclined to God.

I’m reasonably sure that this is a pretty natural response.  It’s human nature to worry that someone who has such a greater degree of power or authority will not be fair.  How many people doubt the fairness of governments or militaries?  How many students doubt the fairness of teachers?  How many employees doubt the fairness of employers?  The doubt is not always deserved, but the doubt is human nature for the person in a lesser position.

This is where Psalm 29 comes in.  How do we know that David has a recognition of God’s vastly more powerful position?  Read the psalm.  Look at all the things that David says about God.  God is strong, splendid, and holy (holy means different, remember).  God thunders over water.  God’s voice alone is capable of breaking cedar trees.  God’s voice shakes the wilderness.  God’s voice bursts forth like the flickering flames of fire.  God brings forth the birth of the next generation of all animals, not just humans.  God is also capable of bringing the end of things, including nature!  God rules over the uncontrollable forces like floods.  David has every reason to see God as a being of vast power.

Remember the other half of having a fear of the Lord, however.  Notice that in Psalm 28, while David has fear of the Lord and he asks the Lord to make sure that he is not swept away with the wicked, he also does not lose faith that God will hear him.  Even in the midst of doubt, the Lord is his strength and shield.  The Lord is where his heart trusts.  The Lord continues to be his refuge even in the midst of his desire to remind the Lord to not sweep him away.

This is a great picture of how fear of the Lord works.  Fearing something does not mean losing faith in it.  When we are doing it right, it shouldn’t.

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Year 8, Day 175: Psalms 27

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I am going to run the risk of sounding like a broken record today.  This is a good thing, though.  There is a principle that is important when it comes to Biblical study. Scripture should interpret scripture.  What that means is that when we read scripture, we should pick up on themes.  We should see common threads.  We should be able to see continuous messages throughout God’s Word.

As I read this chapter, I hear David crying out to God.  Yes, this is a plea serving as a reminder for God to protect him.  David is coming under persecution and he wants to be spared.  He wants to be brought into peace.  How many people cannot resonate with that, especially in a moment of persecution?

Look more deeply.  Where is David’s focus?  What is the one thing that for which he asks?  He simply wants to dwell in the house of the Lord.  His focus is upon God and His dwelling place.  In the midst of His turmoil, he does not forget where His heart resides.

This doesn’t mean that David doesn’t see the persecution around him.  This psalm begins with David’s plea.  David recognizes his plight.  What David does, though, is allow his plight to bring him back to his center.  David allows the turmoil in his life to remind him about his focus.

Once he has his focus upon the Lord, he can take confidence in what he knows.  The Lord is His shelter.  The lord will lift David’s head up.  The Lord will teach David in His ways because his heart is focused on God.  He has reason to be strong.  He has reason to wait upon the Lord.  He has reason for courage.

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Year 8, Day 174: Psalms 25-26

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Psalms 25 and 26 are both psalms asking God to look past transgression and bring the psalmist into righteousness.  This is not a surprise; both the psalms are written by David.  If anything is true about David, it is that he lived life to the fullest.  When he was righteous, he was gloriously righteous.  When he was in the wrong, he was gloriously in the wrong.  Furthermore, he was incredibly aware of his strengths and weaknesses.  This is why he was a man after the Lord’s own heart.

On this very point, I think one of the key verses in this chapter is Psalm 25:12.  Who is the man who will fear the Lord?  The one that the Lord instructs in His ways.  There is something deeply spiritual about this concept.

First of all, understand the inherent connection because fear and instruction.  When I say fear, I’m not talking about a paralyzing fear.  I’m talking about the kind of fear that recognizes authority and the ability to affect one’s life.  I know this feeling as a teacher.  The day before every test, I make sure that my students realize that I have the capacity of putting a few very challenging problems on the test.  I don’t make them feel like they will all fail as that would be defeating.  But I do make them realize their need to be masters over the material.  Their fear of my evaluation of their skill motivates them to study harder and eventually to do better.

This is the inherent connection between fear and instruction.  When we are afraid of God’s evaluation of our life – specifically His judgment that we are found wanting – we are motivated to become better.  When we fear that we may end up with an eternity of separation from Him, we are motivated to become masters of His ways.  The fear of the Lord is where our righteousness begins.  As other places in the Bible say, “The beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord.”

We need to make sure that we don’t lose that.  Sure, we don’t want to have a paralyzing fear of the Lord.  But we do need to have recognition that the Lord is the final judge.  He is the one who will righteously determine our eternal fate.  He is the one who can save and make right.  When we understand this perspective properly, we become open to His instruction and we can change to become more like Him.

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Year 8, Day 173: Psalms 23-24

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There is no more iconic psalm than Psalm 23. This psalm has been said at more funerals - and weddings, go figure – than any other psalm in the Bible.  When someone says the word psalm, I’m willing to bet that if we associate it with anything that most of us immediately do so with some part of this psalm.

Why is it the quintessential psalm?  To be honest, I blame a lot of that on rote tradition.  People use this psalm because its just what people do.  Instead of being original and picking a psalm with genuine meaning, I think many people used this psalm because its all they know.  I bring this up because it lifts up an inherent danger of the psalms – or any part of scripture.  When some scripture becomes iconic we can stop thinking about it.  While we want to be familiar with scripture, we want to meditate upon it.  Familiar should never replace meditation.

There are good reasons for this psalm to be iconic, however.  This psalm speaks deeply to the nature of God in many stages of life.  While it is certainly not a universal psalm, it is widely applicable.  When we are feeling lost, we are reminded that the Lord is a shepherd.  When we are feeling anxious, we are reminded that the path of the Lord is to still waters. When we lose our identity, we are reminded that He leads us into righteousness for the sake of His name.  When we are tempted, we are reminded that He leads us with both rod and staff.  When we feel alone, we are reminded that He invites us to His table.  There are many reasons to find this psalm appealing.

Psalm 24 gives us a different perspective on the Lord.  Whereas Psalm 23 is about the more pastoral nature of God, Psalm 24 is more about His splendor.  He is the king of glory.  He causes us to look up and rejoice.  The entire earth is His domain.  He is strong.  He is mighty.

For me, though, the greatest part of this psalm is the central verses.  If the Lord is so full of glory, who can ascend up to Him?  We are told that the righteous can go up.  Remember, though, that the righteous are made righteous by God.  The psalm isn’t telling us that the good and perfect people can go up.  The psalm is telling us that those who are after God’s own heart – those that God makes righteous – can go up to Him.

I think this is a very powerful word for the day. The Lord is splendorous.  But we are invited to be with Him.  He makes it possible for us to participate in His glory.

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Year 8, Day 172: Psalms 21-22

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For those who worship in a liturgical style, Psalm 22 is very familiar on one particular day.  It is the psalm of Maundy Thursday.  It is the psalm of the stripping of the altar.  It is the psalm that puts up the framework of Jesus’ death.

That being said, remember that while the psalms can have a prophetic voice they are originally written in a context and for a context.  Psalm 22 is a psalm that David wrote when his enemies surrounded him.  It was a psalm from when he was at an ultimate low in his life.  It is a psalm when David most greatly felt the scorn of those around him.

There’s a cool point about this as it shows us what God is after.  As you listen to David’s words, note that you cannot find any doubt of the Lord within them!  When David is at his lowest, he’s not asking where God is to be found!  David is praising the Lord and calling for His salvation!  For a person after God’s own heart, coming under the eye and oppression of evil is not a reason to doubt God’s existence but an opportunity to express one’s faith in God!

This brings us back to the example of Christ.  For Jesus, the procession of the cross was an opportunity to grieve the evil of humankind.  It was also an opportunity to embrace the plan of God.  It was an opportunity to bring true salvation to those who will receive it.  Evil should always be grieved. Yet we should be quick to remember that it is every bit as much an opportunity to turn to God and embrace His salvation – even if salvation means waiting for the resurrection to experience His glory.  That’s exactly what Jesus did.

This brings us to the praise of Psalm 21.  In this psalm we hear more words about the greatness of God and what He is able to do.  He gives us life.  He bestows joy and blessing upon us.  He sees our enemies.  He will judge over them.  This is why He is God.

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Year 8, Day 171: Psalms 19-20

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Psalm 19 has some iconic verses.  It tells us that the law of the Lord is perfect.  It revives the soul. It is to be sought out more than God.  It makes the heart glad.  It makes the wise simple.  It is enlightening.  It is enduring.  It warns us from mistakes.  For all these reasons, it is greatly to be desired.

Yet, do we live that way?  I can’t say that I have, at least not for the vast majority of life. Most of the years of my life have been pursuing my own dreams, my own gold, and my own happiness.  That doesn’t mean that I denied God; I can’t think of a time in my life when I did not believe in a higher being.  But I wasn’t living as though God’s Word was my ultimate guidebook to life.  Even now, when I am much better about making it central, it is still challenging amidst the distractions of the world.

This psalm ends with an iconic verse.  When I was preaching weekly, this prayer was how I began every sermon.  “May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in your sight, Oh Lord, my rock and my redeemer.”  This verse is the culmination of what this blog post has been about thus far.  We should be living in such a way that every thought and every word brings joy to the Lord.  Every breath we take and every action we make should be something that the Lord can use.  That’s the goal.

This is a wonderful way to bring in Psalm 20.  Psalm 20 is about the greatness of the Lord’s salvation.  Why do we live our live with His Word as our ultimate guidebook?  We live this way because He is the fulfiller of plans.  He is the one who saves.  He makes us upright.  This is why we trust in His name.

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Year 8, Day 170: Psalms 17-18

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Today we have two psalms of David.  Both psalms are focused on the nature of God and His deliverance.  Both psalms assume the righteousness of the psalmist.

Look at this second point.  There’s no doubt who David is.  This is the man who had Uriah killed so that he could take his wife.  In fact, he had multiple wives at the same time!  Here is a man who struggled to keep his children under control.  Here is a man who certainly had his faults, especially in his personal life.

However, David doesn’t assume perfection.  David is righteous because his heart desires the Lord.  There is a difference between perfection and righteousness in spite of the fact that we often conflate the two concepts.  Perfection means that a person is without error.  Righteous means that in spite of one’s condition God has deemed the person justified.  When our hearts incline to Him, He makes us righteous.  We, like David, can have significant flaws yet still be righteous in God’s eyes.  We need not be perfect, we simply need to pursue the Lord and His ways.

Having said all of this, now turn to what David says about the Lord.  It is the Lord who caused David to rise above his enemies.  It is the Lord who fought for him.  It is the Lord who delivered him.  The Lord thunders from heaven.

Look at what David says about the character of the Lord.  He is merciful, blameless, pure, saving, a light, a rock, and strength.  Against the wicked He is judgmental, tortuous, and confrontational.  He pursues what is good and casts off that which is evil.

All of these things combined is why David knows that God will listen when David calls to Him.  If the Lord is righteous, then the Lord will hear those who pursue righteousness.  It is a natural conclusion to make.  Why wouldn’t God desire to hear from the people whose heart is inclined in the same way as His own?

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Year 8, Day 169: Psalms 15-16

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The two psalms for today give us a shift in perspective.  Rather than focusing on the evil nature of the wicked around us, today’s psalms ask us to contemplate what it means to be a person who walks in the ways of the Lord.  Who are the righteous?  What does their life look like?  What does it mean to not simply speak one’s faith in words but actually live it out?

The first thing that we note is that a righteous person is righteous in their heart.  That righteousness comes from truth.  The heart of the righteous is focused on truth, not lies or deceit.  The righteous person’s heart seeks a fair look, and not a biased look, at their own life.  They are honest, not deceptive.

There are fruit to be had when one’s heart is right.  A righteous heart leads to productive relationships with one’s neighbors.  It leads to disgust when looking at evil or vile behavior.  It leads to fair and even generous sharing of resources.  In other words, the righteous person becomes a blessing to one’s community, not just oneself.  You can always tell the work of a righteous person because he makes the world around him a better place.

So how does one get a righteous heart?  Psalm 16 gives us some good advice.  The righteous person is informed by, not just in, the Lord’s ways.  The Lord’s ways aren’t something to be understood but lived.  It is the counsel of the Lord that the righteous seek.  It is the comfort that comes with closeness to the Lord that the righteous seek.  It is the joy that comes with walking with one’s God that the righteous seek.

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Year 8, Day 168: Psalms 13-14

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We have the same interesting dynamic that was spoken about yesterday.  The wicked seem to prosper.  The wicked seem to go unchallenged by God.  The wicked devour God’s people and God’s people wonder how long it will go on.

As with yesterday, notice how the psalmist does not allow this reality to question the nature of God.  Not once does the psalmist wonder if God is capable of being a savior, or if God is able to judge the wicked, or if God is even real in the first place.  The psalmist is not looking for gaps in God’s being.  The psalmist is not looking for inconsistencies between His promises and reality.

The psalmist is trying to make sense of his own experience, not make sense of God.  This is a really important point.  God is beyond our understanding.  It is one thing for us to try and understand Him; it is another thing – entirely wrong – to bring God’s character into question because of our limited human capacity. In one position we understand that the flaw or gap lies within us; in the other the assume that the issue lies within God.

That being said, look at how the psalmist deals with God’s perspective in Psalm 14.  In this psalm, the perspective that we get is a God who has given free will and who is looking down upon the earth to see how people are utilizing the gift.  Who is using their free will to obtain their own self-centered desires?  Who is using their gift to pursue God and His ways?  This is what a God who understands true freedom looks like.  This is what a God who understands true love looks like.

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Year 8, Day 167: Psalms 10-12

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The psalms for today are similarly grouped.  A common thread runs through the first and the last psalm.  The psalmist wonders how it is that the Lord sits back while evil prospers and righteousness fades from the land.

This is a fairly common dynamic among human beings.  We hear the prophets speak frequently about the growing evil among the people.  We hear Jesus speak in the Gospels about the corrupt generation around Him.  Paul is so frustrated with the corruption f the Jews around Him that he vows to only minister to Gentiles after Corinth!  These feelings have continued even into the modern age.  Every generation has people within it that feel that the world is slipping more and more into self-centered evil.  It is easy to go through life and wonder why God can sit back and watch evil prosper.

This is a good theological question to answer.  The reality is that God gives us free will.  He has given us this life to choose what we will.  We can choose good or evil; it is our choice.  After all, if we didn’t have the ability to reject God and His ways, would there actually be a choice to follow God and His ways?  Would that choice be meaningful at all?  The reality is that in order to give space for people to choose relationship with God, God must also give space to allow people to choose their own ways while rejecting God’s ways.

In each of the first and the last psalms, and especially in Psalm 11, there is a very important point to bring out.  While the psalmist does wonder how God can sit back, the psalmist never questions God and His omnipotence.  In each case, the psalmist believes in God’s ability to protect the poor, counter the oppressor, and judge over evil.  God’s ability is not what is in doubt here, it is His timing.

This is really important.  It is one thing to doubt God’s timing in the midst of our own human inability to see and know everything.  We can doubt God’s timing because we don’t see the big picture.  That’s understandable.  What we want to avoid is questioning God’s existence or His power.  It never should be a question of ability, we can question when.

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