Psalm 143 "Sitting in Darkness"

Psalm for Today = 143:1-4

¹ Hear my prayer, O Lord;
    give ear to my pleas for mercy!
    In your faithfulness answer me, in your righteousness!
² Enter not into judgment with your servant,
    for no one living is righteous before you.

³ For the enemy has pursued my soul;
    he has crushed my life to the ground;
    he has made me sit in darkness like those long dead. ⁴ Therefore my spirit faints within me;
    my heart within me is appalled.

Comments:

This psalm of David, is classified as an Individual Lament; individual because it is written in the 1^st person singular (me, my, I) and a lament not because it is sad our mourning, but because it is asking God for something. There is a situation in the life of the psalmist that needs the intervention of the Lord.

What impressed me this morning as I was reading was not David’s request for help but his confession that “no one living is righteous before you”(v.2) As Christians we are quick to quote Romans 3:23’s “for all have sinned” and move on. Yet I wonder if we really believe that we are sinners that stand no chance of talking, explaining, or bluffing our way into eternity. Surely if God was to judge between us and our enemies we would be justified—right? No, we are all unable to stand should God enter into judgment with us…no matter our nation, race, culture, or socio-economic class. We are no better than any other in this respect.

1 John 1:8-9 says, ^“If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

David understood confession. He also understood how his enemies had impacted his life. In poetic language he describes the darkness in which he was forced to live. How Jesus changes this! While our physical circumstances may not be changed immediately Jesus came to minister to those in darkness. As we see in the Gospels,

Matthew 4:15-17 [Isaiah 9:1-2]

¹⁵ “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,
    the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—
¹⁶ the people dwelling in darkness
    have seen a great light,
and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death,
    on them a light has dawned.”

¹⁷ From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

John 1:9-13 

“The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. ¹⁰ He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. ¹¹ He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. ¹² But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, ¹³ who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. 

Are we a zombie nation, or does our heart's condition appall us? Will we confess our need to the Lord? Will we admit our guilt and unworthiness? Will we receive the true light Jesus Christ’s gift of salvation or will we sullenly choose to continue sitting “in darkness like those long dead”?

 

We all need to hear and heed the words of Jesus,
       “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Psalm 142 — No One Cares For My Soul

Psalm for Today = 142:3-5

When my spirit faints within me,
    you know my way!
In the path where I walk
    they have hidden a trap for me.
Look to the right and see:
    there is none who takes notice of me;
no refuge remains to me;
    no one cares for my soul.

    you know my way!

In the path where I walk

    they have hidden a trap for me.

Comments:

This psalm prompts me to ask several questions...

·     To whom do we complain/cry out? (v. 1-3)

·      Who cares for our soul? (v. 4)

·      Why do we cry out? (v. 5-6)

·      What do we need? (v. 7a)

·      How will it end? (v. 7b)

The psalmist, David, from the cave of despair, cried out to the Lord in his hurt and recognized that though his earthly refuge had repeatedly failed, God himself was his refuge. A few years ago I was particularly struck by a phrase in this passage, “no one cares for my soul” and as I read the corresponding Gospel reading for that day (Matthew 14) I saw that Jesus had experienced the same thing and understood not only my feelings but cared for others who were in need even out of his place of pain which apart from his passion week was arguably his most challenging day in ministry.

In Matthew 14, Jesus learned of his cousin John the Baptist’s murder and withdrew to be alone and probably to grieve (v.13), but the crowds of inquisitive and hurting people got there first. Did Jesus send them away because he was hurting? No. (v.14) He provided “a refuge” and “a portion” to them. He was moved by compassion for them and healed all their sick. His own hurt and loss did not prevent him from giving himself to compassionate ministry. Yet, he did take time to allow the Father to minister to him (v. 23) for a good long time in prayer.

We all need to take personal refuge in God. How many people today have the same heart cry as David, “no refuge remains to me; no one cares for my soul”? Far too many! What can we do to communicate that there is genuine care available in Christ (who understands their feelings) and that the church is a better refuge than a desert cave, a more compassionate community for hurting people where they can be fed and healed? Ironically, when we stop focusing on our own significant issues in order to minister the love and comfort of Christ to others, especially out of the brokenness of our own hurt and weakness, we too are lifted out of the pit and set on solid ground.

[Covid-19 Update: Even now, in 2020, when we have been told to "Stay home, Save Lives" we might find this line from the psalm ringing even more true than in the press of a demanding schedule. "No one cares for my soul" may be true for those who feel isolated and out of sight. Remember that you are seen, you are known, and you are loved by the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and that is a refuge like no other. Reach out and encourage others in the name of Jesus today!]

Lord, when others fail me, and I know they will, may I find what is missing when I come to you. When no one cares for my soul, please remind me that you do! Help me to share that portion with others today as I trust in you. Yes, you know my path. You care for my soul. From this relationally safe place, let me care well for the souls of others. Thank you for not leaving me alone.

Let me add this thought, for those who minister to others, especially those who think that they have to stand alone...

Jesus didn’t send his disciples out to minister alone, so why do we? Pastors and Christian leaders need to know that they are not alone. It is too often a solitary calling as a result of our undo emphasis on individualism instead of a collective family of God approach. We also need to feel that we have been heard and understood, yet without being coddled. 

As pastors, we are not merely doing a job. Sometimes we wish ministry was just a job like painting a house or selling widgets, but we are actually waging war in the spiritual realm. Sometimes we can approach the ministry as a task to perform, a goal to reach, only in the natural sense…and as a result, we grow gradually drier and more brittle and our people suffer for it. Do we crave the refreshing water of the Spirit?

War takes its toll on relationships. So why do we think we can do it alone? I can't imagine a Christian leader who wouldn't resonate with the psalmist's lament in verse 4. We must become more intentional about taking refuge in the goodness of the Lord... together!

Psalm 141 "Just Slap Me!"

Psalm for Today = 141:5, 9

⁵ Let a righteous man strike me—it is a kindness;
    let him rebuke me—it is oil for my head;
    let my head not refuse it.
Yet my prayer is continually against their evil deeds…

⁹ Keep me from the trap that they have laid for me
    and from the snares of evildoers!

Comments:

Almost every time I have commented on this Psalm I have talked about verses 3-4 that talk about God setting a guard over our mouths. I will not talk about that his time. Let’s look at verse 5 which is not as well received in our culture today. We don’t like to be corrected, much less actually disciplined, yet the wise man is teachable and correctible.

“Let a righteous man strike me—it is a kindness”: Will we respond to righteous disciple as actually being a kindness shown to us that will save us from more pain and misery later or will we stiffen our neck and fight back?

“let him rebuke me—it is oil for my head”: this is a parallel line to the previous. Rebuke is like the oil that was put on the head of the guest when he arrives after a long dusty walk—“let  my head not refuse it.”

 

At the same time that he is being teachable to the rebuke of the righteous, he is praying against the works and words of the evildoers. This is not only a crying out for justice and deliverance but a tacit acknowledgment that the psalmist knows he needs God’s help to hinder evil deeds, and that he has compassion on those upon whom the evil deeds might fall.

What we so often fail to see is that the elements of verse 5 are necessary in order for the prayer of verse 9 to be answered.

 

If we won’t be disciplined and learn from the rebuke of righteous men and women, then we have no hope of avoiding the snares and traps of the evildoer. Proverbs 12:1 says,

“Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates reproof is stupid.”

 

And in the New Testament, the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews makes it clear that discipline is a sign that God loves us.

^"And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons?

“My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,
    nor be weary when reproved by him.
For the Lord disciplines the one he loves,
    and chastises every son whom he receives.”

It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? (Hebrews 12:5-7)

 

If we don’t pray against evil deeds, we are either arrogant in our self-regard, or without compassion for those at risk, or maybe both—Heaven forbid! As it is written,

 

 “I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.” (Revelation 3:18-20)

Psalm 140 "What's on Your Head?"

Psalm for Today = 140:7, 9-10
 ⁷ O Lord, my Lord, the strength of my salvation,
    you have covered my head in the day of battle…

⁹ As for the head of those who surround me,
    let the mischief of their lips overwhelm them!
¹⁰ Let burning coals fall upon them!
    Let them be cast into fire,
    into miry pits, no more to rise!

Comments:

The psalmist’s lament (request) of God is to be preserved from violent men (v.1, 5) who are acting out of evil/wickedness. There is a discernible ABC A’B’C’ thought pattern in verses 1-5 if you look for it.

What caught my eye today was the juxtaposition of the psalmist’s head which had been protected in battle by the Lord’s covering (v.7) and the wicked who are different and upon whose head David prays and imprecation. Yet if we look at the content of the imprecation we see the judgment he prays for them is totally appropriate and is based on their own words and plans against God’s people, “let the mischief of their lips overwhelm them!”

The day of battle dawns for all of us blood red, wrath red, in the morning. As we enter the fray are we wearing the Lord’s helmet of salvation or have we been left vulnerable by persistent wickedness and evil to the Lord raining burning coals down on us? It is sad to think that there are some people who are so hateful to others that those others out of self-defense, would pray a curse on them from the Lord! I don’t want to be a part of that group of violent men. Oh Lord preserve me!

Here is an interesting twist. The idea of coals falling on someone’s head sounds familiar in New Testament contest doesn’t it?

Romans 12:19-21 (ESV) says, “Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

This is the kind of imprecation we should pray…that they would totally messed up by our kindness, by our non-violent response to their violent ways, and by our willingness to trust judgment into the hands of God. If we will leave the judging to God, our loads will be lightened to lead our community in love and forgiveness! May our lives of love and acceptance pour burning coals on the heads of our enemies to the place where they would cry out to you Lord to forgive them.

Psalm 139 "Search Me"

Psalm for Today = 139:1-3, 23-24
¹ O Lord, you have searched me and known me!
² You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
    you discern my thoughts from afar.
³ You search out my path and my lying down
    and are acquainted with all my ways…

²³ Search me, O God, and know my heart!
    Try me and know my thoughts!
²⁴ And see if there be any grievous way in me,
    and lead me in the way everlasting!

Comments:

I love this psalm for its revelation of God’s omniscience (his all-knowing) and his omnipresence (his being everywhere). There is even one section that hints at his omnipotence (he is seen as the Creator). His knowledge and his presence are the repeated themes that bring such comfort. As I read this psalm again today I was pondering the beginning and the ending which share the same idea…searching me.

The psalmist is comforted by the fact that God has searched him and knows all there is to know about his habits, thoughts, and lifestyle and yet not only remains present in his life but is completely inescapable! 

After talking about the amazing knowledge of God he concludes the psalm by asking God to search him, test him, to see if there is “any grievous way in me” (v.24).

I don’t know if these two passages today cause you to ask some questions but they prompt me to ask, why would you ask God to search you if you have already said that he has already searched you? Isn’t it a redundant request?

It is one thing to acknowledge that God knows everything about you and another to invite him to keep searching and knowing everything about your life in order to keep you on the path to the Celestial City. I have been listening to Nate Currin’s new folk album Pilgrim based on Pilgrim’s Progress and perhaps that has helped to accentuate the journeying aspect of the life of faith for me today. The psalmist realizes that he has not arrived yet, and therefore needs the continued guidance of the Lord. Keep me on your path Jesus! 

It is important for us to not slip into a mindset of having arrived. When we think we have arrived we stop learning, stop seeking, and stop growing in grace. Let’s rest in the knowledge that God knows all about us and yet loves us, and at the same time let’s actively invite the Holy Spirit to convict, instruct, guide, and comfort as only he can!

Psalm 138 "Whole-hearted Thankfulness"

Photo by Alex Woods on Unsplash

Psalm for Today = 138:1-3 

¹ I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart;
    before the gods I sing your praise;
² I bow down toward your holy temple
    and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness,

    for you have exalted above all things
    your name and your word.
³ On the day I called, you answered me;
    my strength of soul you increased.

    before the gods I sing your praise;

² I bow down toward your holy temple

    and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness,

    for you have exalted above all things

    your name and your word.

³ On the day I called, you answered me;

    my strength of soul you increased.

Comments:

What a tremendous psalm of whole-hearted thanks (v.1) by David and words of his future confidence in the Lord. But what is David thankful for?

1.    God was a God of steadfast love and faithfulness (v. 2a)

2.    God had exalted the name and word of God above all things (v. 2b).

3.    God had answered David’s prayer and strengthened his soul (v. 3)

4.    The Lord though high regards the lowly while distancing himself from the haughty (v. 6).

5.    God preserved David’s life in the midst of trouble (v. 7a).

6.    God opposed the wrath of David’s enemies (v. 7b)

7.    That God’s purpose for him (David) would be fulfilled (v. 8).

So what are we whole-heartedly thankful for, or does our thankfulness not rise to such a level? I think it is possible in our affluent society to have become so acclimated to having our needs met and dwelling in relative safety that while we may have a habit of saying “thank you” we don’t fully live lives of gratitude.

David knew what it was like to be falsely accused, hunted, and betrayed by a trusted advisor. He knew what it was like to have it all and also to have nothing. He knew what it was like to mourn the apparent death of his family after an Amalekite raid (1 Samuel 30). Yet, even then, he encouraged himself in the Lord. Thankfulness is a great way to encourage yourself in the Lord.  

I would like to borrow the age-old question “what comes first, the chicken or the egg?” and apply it to the issue of personal gratitude. So what comes first…the thankfulness (v.1) or the strengthening of the soul (v. 3)? Perhaps David understood something that we don’t. While if our prayers are answered it makes it easier to be thankful, the gratitude that arises from a love relationship with the Lord will never be dependent upon our getting what we want.

Mere things cannot produce “whole-hearted” gratitude…can they?

Psalm 136 "His Steadfast Love"

Psalm for Today = 136:1, 26 “His Steadfast Love”

¹ Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
    for his steadfast love endures forever…

²⁶ Give thanks to the God of heaven,
    for his steadfast love endures forever.

Comments:

This psalm walks through the history of Israel in the first line of each verse and answers each fact with a repeated line about God's love (Heb. hesed) for his people in the second line in each verse (26 times). The psalmist must have known we would need to repeatedly remind ourselves of that truth!

I confess that I have a love-hate relationship with this psalm. I used to hate it because it was so repetitive. It violated my internal “don’t-go-around-the-barn-again-just-put-the-horse-in-the-stall” principle. I had actually stopped reading the second line of each verse to focus on the “meat” of the poetic recounting of the history of Israel. Then ten years ago I gave a message entitled, “Say It Again” where we walked through ten passages in the Bible that have repeated terms where God wanted to make a special point. This psalm was example number one!

 

[Excerpt: As students of the Bible, it is helpful for us to develop our observational skills. We have to train ourselves to search out the author’s original meaning and to avoid creating our own “meanings.” One simple method we can use to find clues that will help us determine an author’s emphasis in a given passage is to look for things that are repeated– either single words, phrases, or full sentences. Today we will look at the following ten passages with repeated words or phrases, and take new joy in those times when God “says it again”.]

 

I came to understand that both parts are needed! Not only that, but the refrain was probably spoken by the congregation, thus enabling them to see their history not as merely a chain of unrelated events but as an expression of God’s steadfast love. Their whole history was surrounded, sandwiched, and marinated in the hesed of God! So is ours! Now I love this psalm because it so thoroughly expresses or privilege of participating in the steadfast love of God.

It might be an encouraging exercise to write out our personal salvation history in short verse-lines and then put this refrain between all the lines. Read it through and give thanks!

Psalm 135 The Lord is good!

Psalm for Today = 135:3-4
³ Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good;
    sing to his name, for it is pleasant!
⁴ For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself,
    Israel as his own possession.

Comments:

Praise is to worshipfully declare what is true about God and honor him for it. Thanksgiving is to gratefully declare what God has done for you. They are often very hard as hard to separate as two sides of the same coin. What attributes of the Lord do we see mentioned here in this brief passage? The psalmist says that He is good and that his name/character is pleasant which sounds familiar to readers of this blog. Just a couple of days ago my post on Psalm 133 was entitled, “Good and Pleasant” as a description of brothers dwelling in unity. So we see in Psalm 135 that God is described using these same two words. It is as if when we dwell  together in unity that God is there in our midst. This passage reminds me of two others: 

First, it reminds me of Matthew 18:19-20,

 “Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask,

                     it will be done for them by my Father in heaven.

For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”

Second, it reminds me of the commission that Jesus placed upon the Gadarene man delivered from a legion of demons, that he should go home and tell everyone the great/good things that God had done for him.

·         Mark 5:19 “Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you.”

·         Luke 8:39 “Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.” And he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city how much Jesus had done for him.

These passages are consistent with verse 4. God is good and pleasant because he chooses people to be his own!

Questions:

What is good and pleasant about the Lord? Take time to list at least five attributes.

What are the good things that God has done for us? Take time to pray and ask God to give you opportunity to tell someone today about the great things that God has done for you!

Psalm 134 "All you Servants of the Lord"

Psalm for Today = 134:1-3

¹Come, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord,
    who stand by night in the house of the Lord!
² Lift up your hands to the holy place
    and bless the Lord!

³ May the Lord bless you from Zion,
    he who made heaven and earth!

“Best of…” Comments from years past:

Worship is the appropriate attitude and posture for those who are in God's presence. In the psalmist's day it involved actually going to the temple...and you had to be a priest to be in the holy place. Today, by faith in Christ we are all priests and should live lives of worship!

No matter when we are on duty, even when no one else is around, we can still bless the Lord! 

Comments:

Who would have stood by night in the temple? Those assigned as watchmen to guard the gates and the priests who were tasked with keeping the lamps burning. What is our appointed task today? What is our assignment this evening, tomorrow, and this week?

Whatever it is, we can choose to bless the Lord by doing what he has assigned to us with a willing and dedicated heart. For as the psalmist calls to all “servants of the Lord” so too the New Testament also admonishes us in serving the Lord! 

“Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.” (Colossians 3:23-24 ESV)

May our work be diligent, though no one may be watching; working enthusiastically as an outflow of our dedication and devotion to Christ. No matter what we do, let us lift up our hands and bless the Lord with it! Centuries ago in England, the church bells would be rung each hour, not to call the people to church, but to remind the people to consciously invite God into the midst of what they were doing and to dedicate what they were doing (plowing, cooking, herding, weeding, spinning, sewing, studying, etc.) to the service of Christ.

Who do we worship with our work?

Psalm 133 "Good and Pleasant"

Psalm for Today = 133:1-2 

¹ Behold, how good and pleasant it is
    when brothers dwell in unity!

² It is like the precious oil on the head,
    running down on the beard,
on the beard of Aaron,
    running down on the collar of his robes!

Comments:
We think we get verse 1... it is good to get along with your family, neighbors, community, etc. But living in unity is far more than merely getting along with each other. It refers to something stronger and more relational than simple quiet coexistence. It implies a sharing together, united purpose, as well as assuming a proximity of location.

 

In our culture we suffer a relational poverty as a result of the breaking of relationships with our nuclear and extended families. As a result of such alienation we are increasingly at risk financially, emotionally, and physically. One of the things we often notice in dealing with people in financial crisis is that they are alienated from their family, broken relationships that must be reconciled. When brothers (and sisters) dwell together in unity—of heart, purpose, mission—it is remarkable good, pleasant, and refreshing (v.3)! Jesus repeatedly commanded his followers to love one another.

 

“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you… These things I command you, so that you will love one another.” (John 15:12, 17)

 

Paul echoes this message and urges unity.

“I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” (Ephesians 4:1-3)

 

The Apostle John, in his gospel and epistles, reminds his readers of this command at least ten times.

“Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. ¹² No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.” (1 John 4:11-12)

 

But what about verse 2…the part about oil running down the beard of Aaron? This verse refers to the anointing of the new high priest in the temple. Instructions about this anointing are given in Exodus 29-30 and Aaron’s actual anointing is recorded in Leviticus 8:12. It would have been a time of joy because it involved the preparation of the mediator to minister on the people’s behalf before God. Could it be that the love and unity we show among the brethren is a sign that we are prepared by the anointing of the Holy Spirit to minister on behalf of others?

 

One other aspect of this I was thinking about today was that of the cities of refuge where those convicted of manslaughter were allowed to remain under house arrest until the death of the current high priest. For those people trapped by the mistakes or the accidents of their past, the anointing of a new high priest would have been joyful in the sense of release from the burden of the past. Perhaps when we love each other and dwell in unity it may release us to bring deliverance to others. What do you think?

Psalm 132 "We heard of it in Ephrathah"

Psalm for Today = 132:3-7
³ “I will not enter my house
    or get into my bed,
⁴ I will not give sleep to my eyes
    or slumber to my eyelids,
⁵ until I find a place for the Lord,
    a dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.”

⁶ Behold, we heard of it in Ephrathah;
    we found it in the fields of Jaar.
⁷ “Let us go to his dwelling place;
    let us worship at his footstool!”

Comments:
The pilgrims sang out these words in remembrance of David’s heart commitment to building the temple as a place for God’s name to dwell. I can see how David’s example might have even served to spur on the weary travelers (and to challenge lazy ones) on their way to Jerusalem. Actually, it still serves to motivate me to make sure that I don’t go to bed without making sure that I have spent time with the Lord who dwells in my heart.  

v. 6 “Ephrathah” and “the fields of Jaar” are used synonymously, most likely to refer to David’s hometown (Expositor’s Bible Commentary notes that “Ephrathah by itself could refer to the vicinity around Bethlehem (Ruth 4:11; Mic 5:2) or to Kiriath Jearim (cf. 1 Chronicles 2:19, 24, 50); but with the further description of "the fields of Jaar"--a reference to Kiriath Jearim (Jearim is a plural of "Jaar")” it favors Kiriath Jearim where the Ark had been kept in the home of Obed Edom until David brought it to Jerusalem.). In effect, David’s devotion had become well known to those in his home town and they had caught the vision of going to worship the Lord in that place. As David had been an example to those in his hometown, those people in the words of this psalm had become an example to the pilgrims that were singing it.

Daybreak approaching the Old City & Mt. of Olives

As I have noted on other occasions, we don’t have to travel to the site of the former Temple in Jerusalem to offer sacrifices, for we can come into God’s presence even more fully by faith in the delivering work of Jesus Christ.

Despite the fact that we have better access to God, we do well to learn the lesson of Psalm 132 and spur each other on lest we neglect to make the communal pilgrimage of faith.

As Hebrews 10:19-25 says,

“Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” (ESV) 

Despite western cultural influences, Biblical Christianity is not an individualized and independent faith, but a relational response to the love of the triune God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit). Because God is relational at his core, we should be as well. As the ancient Israelites traveled in large bands of family and neighbors to the feasts in Jerusalem, we would do well to embrace the collective nature of Christian faith, in the way we do church. Let’s not neglect to meet together to worship the Lord!

Psalm 131 "Like a Weaned Child "

Psalm for Today = 131:2

¹O Lord, my heart is not lifted up;
    my eyes are not raised too high;
I do not occupy myself with things
    too great and too marvelous for me.
² But I have calmed and quieted my soul,
    like a weaned child with its mother;
    like a weaned child is my soul within me.

³ O Israel, hope in the Lord
    from this time forth and forevermore.

Comments:

I have commented on this psalm several times, tending to focus on verse 1. Verse 3 is very similar in content to yesterday’s post. Remember these songs would have been sung on the way to Jerusalem and the pilgrim is reminded to hope in the Lord…

Remember, this is a "Song of Ascents" that would be sung on the journeys to Jerusalem for the great feasts of the Lord. I can see this verse answering the impatience of some that might arise along the way. "Are we there yet? How much further do we need to walk today? When is dinner? I'm hungry!" Time to break out Psalm 131!

Today I want to revisit v. 2 for what it tells me about the status of my life in Christ using the simile of a “weaned child.”

^“But I have calmed and quieted my soul,
    like a weaned child with its mother;
    like a weaned child is my soul within me.” 

Who “calmed and quieted” my soul? I did. It is my job to calm my soul…not someone else’s job to pamper me and coddle me because I am anxious and fussy! Too many today have not yet reached the “weaned child” stage of development, having been enabled by weak parents, teachers, and government. A child needs to learn early that while they are loved and protected they are not the center of the universe, or to borrow my daughter’s phrase, “They are not the Queen of Narnia!” If a child learns that if they pitch a fit they can get what they want, they will be insufferable by the time they are a teenager! Heaven help us if we are still living this way as adults! An inappropriate tantrum should disqualify our children from getting what they want, even if we had been prepared to provide it. However, a patient and loving trust is to be rewarded.

What is a weaned child? A weaned child has stopped nursing and is eating solid food. He has come to trust his mother to provide what he needs without having to scream and cry to be fed. There is a new level of patience and contentment that should be developed at this point. So have we begun to eat the solid food of the Word of God or do we just want milk (nourishment without responsibility) and want it now?

What is the connection between this word picture and our lives today in Christ? The point is that God knows how to feed His children what they need and when they need it. We don't have to understand everything… we just need to journey with the Lord as those who trust. One of the prophets asked God some pressing questions about the timing of his plan in the world (i.e., How long? How Come?) and got answers that weren't what he was expecting, yet he ends his writing with a prayer that epitomizes that attitude of a spiritually weaned child. After reading the prayer below, you might take the time to contextualize its agrarian word pictures into something drawn from your current economic/cultural situation.

A Prayer of a Weaned Child (Habakkuk 3:17-19)

“Though the fig tree should not blossom,
    nor fruit be on the vines,
the produce of the olive fail
    and the fields yield no food,
the flock be cut off from the fold
    and there be no herd in the stalls,
yet I will rejoice in the Lord;
    I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
God, the Lord, is my strength;
    he makes my feet like the deer's;
    he makes me tread on my high places.”

Psalm 130 "Plentiful Redemption"

Psalm for Today = 130:3-4, 7-8

³ If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities,
    O Lord, who could stand?
⁴ But with you there is forgiveness,
    that you may be feared...

⁷ O Israel, hope in the Lord!
    For with the Lord there is steadfast love,
    and with him is plentiful redemption.
⁸ And he will redeem Israel
    from all his iniquities.

Comments:

After making a request of the Lord in v.1-2, the psalmist makes a confession in 3-4 that there is a great difference between the Lord and the people. Rhetorically, he admits that if God is keeping track of our screw-ups then no one can stand before God. This is bad news because God is omniscient—he knows everything about us. Read this as “He is keeping track.” Yet he is also the one who desires to forgive us.

Because the Lord is the source of forgiveness the psalmist looks for him more than a watchman for the dawn 5-6, and in 7-8 exhorts the people of God to put their hope in Yahweh. Two parallel characteristics are used to support Israel’s putting their hope in the Lord. With him, there is:

1.    Steadfast love, and

2.    Plentiful redemption.

And as a result, he will redeem Israel (his people) from all his iniquities. How many will he forgive? All. Not some, but all! But sin must be confessed to the Lord. Confessing is a simple agreement with God's righteous judgment that we are not God and that He is. He is holy and we are not.

 

We need to be willing to confess our own sins and be forgiven rather than denying our sins and dying in them. The New Testament complement to this psalm is 1 John 1:8-9, which says,

^“If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:8-9)

Psalm 129 "Plowed & Pierced"

Psalm for Today = 129:1-4
¹ “Greatly have they afflicted me from my youth”—

    let Israel now say—

² “Greatly have they afflicted me from my youth,

    yet they have not prevailed against me.

³ The plowers plowed upon my back;

    they made long their furrows.”

⁴ The Lord is righteous;

    he has cut the cords of the wicked.

Comments:

I commented on the imprecation in verses 5-6 the last two times through the book, so I will focus today on the testimony in verses 1-4. 

The psalmist is referring to the national history of Israel, how they had been afflicted from the very beginning. If we were to go through the Bible and list the various nations that had afflicted Israel through the centuries it would be a pretty long list. How many can you name? I came up with more than a dozen off the top of my head.

His repetitive line, “Greatly have they afflicted me from my youth”, is iterated for emphasis, almost like rocking a stuck car to get it out of the snow or sand. Note that within these verses he is also weaving in the role of the individual (me/my) within the community of faith (“let Israel say”).

What is the testimony that needs to be repeated? The righteous Yahweh delivered them by cutting off the yoke of their enemies. Yahweh is righteous, he keeps his promises. He had let Israel know ahead of time that if they turned away from him that he would use the other nations to discipline them, but if they turned and prayed to him he would deliver them. This psalm is a testimony to God’s two-fold faithfulness to his promise—discipline and deliverance.

 

How was this deliverance possible? It is by the stripes on Jesus' back and the holes in his body, that I am set free from the bondage of my sin. As it is written in Isaiah 53:4-6,

"Surely he has borne our griefs
    and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
    smitten by God, and afflicted.
⁵ But he was pierced for our transgressions;
    he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
    and with his wounds we are healed.
⁶ All we like sheep have gone astray;
    we have turned—every one—to his own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
    the iniquity of us all."

Questions:

• So are we following the Lord wholeheartedly today or are we in danger of his loving discipline?
• When we look back on our lives, do we remember both the difficult and the delightful, or have we forgotten the faithful times of God's deliverance?