Psalm 104 "Creating & Caring"

Photo by Klemen Vrankar on Unsplash

Psalm for Today = 104:1-2

¹Bless the Lord, O my soul!  

   O Lord my God, you are very great!

    You are clothed with splendor and majesty,

² covering yourself with light as with a garment,

  stretching out the heavens like a tent.

Comments:

This is the second psalm in a row that has begun with the exhortation to bless the Lord. But how can we the lesser, the weaker, the dependent bless Yahweh who is the Omnipresent, Omnipotent, Omniscient God the great I AM? Psalm 103 encouraged us to bless God by not forgetting “his benefits” centered on the work of redemption. Something about our remembering what God has done blesses him.

In Psalm 104, we see a similar effort to remember God’s greatness as expressed in his Creation and his continued care for his creatures. This lengthy psalm is like a guided tour through the creation where the psalmist points out God’s past work and continued care. We should train our eyes to see his hand and heart at work in the world around us.

This psalm stands firmly against any deist leanings (Deists believe God started everything in motion but is not actively involved with what has been created). Likewise, by God’s example, we should also stand against any tendency within us to withdraw ourselves from being active agents of the kingdom of God in the world.

God, you are very great! May we have eyes to see your splendor and majesty around us today!

Question:

Where have you seen Him working today?

Psalm 103 "No Chide"

Psalm for Today = 103:8-13
⁸ The Lord is merciful and gracious,
    slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
⁹ He will not always chide,
    nor will he keep his anger forever.
¹⁰ He does not deal with us according to our sins,
    nor repay us according to our iniquities.
¹¹ For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
    so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
¹² as far as the east is from the west,
    so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
¹³ As a father shows compassion to his children,
    so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.

Comments:

Psalm 103 is one of the best known and most frequently quoted. After beginning with an appeal to bless the Lord and remember all that he has done for us it begins to list those benefits that we need to remember.

Verse 8 is often found in the OT and I have commented on it before as the true nature of God as revealed in the Old Testament. But what caught my attention today was v.9 “He will not always chide”. While God certainly has grounds to chide us he will not do so forever. The conviction that comes from God shows us our need for forgiveness and leads us to trust Jesus’ death and resurrection as sufficient to cleanse us from all sin.

So what does it mean to chide? My thesaurus lists several terms as synonyms for “chide” including: scold, reproach, reprimand, rebuke, blame, nag, harass, express disapproval, take to task, and tell off.

Wow! What if we went through our lives thinking this was how God relates to us? Once he has forgiven our sins and removed our transgressions in Christ Jesus, he does not chide but shows compassion to his children, to us!

It is much better to run to him in faith than to run away from him in frustration! So what are you going to do today? Where are you headed?

Psalm 102 Hear My Prayer

Psalm for Today = 102:1-2

jack-sharp on Unsplash

¹ Hear my prayer, O Lord;

    let my cry come to you!

² Do not hide your face from me

    in the day of my distress!

Incline your ear to me;

    answer me speedily in the day when I call!

Comments:

This psalm is a classic lament, "Hear my prayer, O Lord". The psalmist’s petition is similar to that of Job…that the Lord would hear his prayer. Verses 3-11 poetically outline the psalmist’s desperate and lonely situation about which he is praying. As followers of Jesus, we can have even more confidence that God hears our prayer than the ancient psalmist since our relationship with the Lord is based on better promises (Hebrews 8:6). Yet he had amazing confidence in the Lord as we can see in v. 12-17 “But you, O Lord…”  

Questions:

• What does the psalmist assert to be true about God in this psalm?
• So what will we testify in advance that God will do on our behalf?

Psalm 101 "Honestly"

Psalm 101:5, 7

 ^“Whoever slanders his neighbor secretly

    I will destroy.

Whoever has a haughty look and an arrogant heart

    I will not endure…

No one who practices deceit

    shall dwell in my house;

no one who utters lies

    shall continue before my eyes.” 

Comment:

I relate to this royal psalm as expressed by King David, not because I am a king and in power but because he takes his responsibilities seriously in light of his covenant with God. He hates lying in all its forms and pledges to run his administration based on truth and justice for all. Some think this psalm may have been like an oath of office for successive kings in the Davidic line... Something appropriate to consider in times of leadership changes.

It seems to me that when we surround ourselves with those who are factually challenged, who do not care to stick to what is true but are happy to define “truth” however it best fits their agenda, we become like them. An honest person will not despise another honest person even when they disagree.

Unfortunately, human culture sets itself against the truth-teller and often labels him as a troublemaker (like Elisha in 1 Kings 18:17). We need more truthful “troublemakers” and fewer liars at all levels of leadership and service, whether church or state!

 Here is a commentary quote on these verses.

“His sense of social commitment comes to the fore. He bears before God a responsibility for his countrymen (vv 6, 8). Accordingly, he has ensured that the members of his administration are men committed to Yahweh, whose trustworthiness is grounded in their religious faith. His ministers are men picked for their moral integrity and cleanness…the principle of truth, so prized in his own life, he has sought to find equally honored among his entourage.” (Leslie C. Allen, Word Biblical Commentary, Psalms 101-150, page 6)

 

Psalm 100 "Cheerfully"

Psalm for Today = 100:1-2

"Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!

Serve the Lord with gladness!

Come into his presence with singing!"

Comments:

I was struck by the first line of verse 2 during a church staff prayer time this morning. How often do we serve the Lord, but not cheerfully? 

While we may not go as far as the corrupt priests in Malachi who despised the services of the Lord (saying it was "Bazah!" ...doesn't that just sound like despising?), we may serve reluctantly, hesitantly, perfunctorily, or even sullenly. But such attitudes are not a sweet savor unto the Lord or unto anyone else.

For me, I confess that this morning it was "sleepily" until the Lord quickened this verse to my soul.

Well, I may still be sleepy, but it is a "cheerful sleepy"!

Psalm 99 "You were a forgiving God to them"

Psalm for Today = 99:8-9

           "O Lord our God, you answered them;

                                       you were a forgiving God to them,

                                                but an avenger of their wrongdoings.

Exalt the Lord our God,

and worship at his holy mountain;

   for the Lord our God is holy!"

Comments:

I find this passage both encouraging and sobering. I hope you are also encouraged to read the first clause about how he answers and forgives. I learned early on in my Christian life to be a quick confessor...and God hears and forgives so faithfully!

Yet if I don't come to him in repentance then He will come to me in recompense.

He is holy and we should be glad that he is!

Let us all come together and worship him!

Psalm 98 "Let the Rivers Clap Their Hands"

Psalm for Today = 98:1, 8-9

“Oh sing to the Lord a new song,

    for he has done marvelous things!

His right hand and his holy arm

    have worked salvation for him…

⁸ Let the rivers clap their hands;

    let the hills sing for joy together

⁹ before the Lord, for he comes

    to judge the earth.

He will judge the world with righteousness,

    and the peoples with equity.”

Comments:

The psalms repeatedly urge us to worship the Lord with song because of what he has done for us. Some of the psalms are actually historical step-by-step remembrances of what God has done for Israel. Here, the “marvelous things” which he has done are summed up rather simply, in that He “worked salvation” (implied—because no one else could) and has revealed it to us.

Not only are the people of God to sing in celebration, but so is creation itself. In v. 8, we see the literary device of Personification (see also 35:10; 19:2; 77:16; 114:3), which means to speak about the non-personal as personal (e.g., giving human characteristics to the inanimate). We know that rivers don’t have hands to clap, but we can hear the ovation of a crowd in the sound of cool water rushing over the rocks. We can’t hear hills sing, but when they are covered with wildflowers after the rains, it seems as though they must be singing for joy.

God is coming to judge the earth in righteousness and equity. Nature is on board with that (Romans 8:20-22), are we? Have we begun to let Christ’s commitment to righteousness seep into our lives and shape our plans? Do we stand for equity among all peoples? As I listen to the river and the hills rejoicing in what God made them to be, I think I need to be more concerned about fairness for others than about trying to direct my own life and protect my own rights. That’s God’s job. Hallelujah!

 


Bonus Story:

“Let the rivers clap their hands”

In thinking about the line in Psalm 98:8, “let the rivers clap their hands”, I am reminded of one summer, when as a young raft captain for a youth group river rafting camp on the Deschutes River in Central Oregon, I had an extremely unpleasant girl assigned to my raft. She talked non-stop, grumbling and complaining about how early she had to get up, how the food was gross, how the water was cold, how the paddling was hard, how the other girls … blah, blah, blah. There is nowhere to go in a 5-man raft to get away from someone like that. I think I prayed, but I’m not sure now.

Now in addition to safety, and directing the paddling of the raft, the raft captain’s job sitting in the right-rear of the 5-man raft is to steer the raft to approach rapids somewhat sideways for the best visibility in choosing a route and then digging in with the paddle at the last minute to head directly into the safest part of the rapid. This specific day was beautiful, yet this girl’s grumbling was driving us all to distraction. We were in relatively calm water between larger sections of rapids and were forced to listen to her monologue.  As we floated casually along, trying to enjoy the amazing scenery, I spotted a single small dip in the river with one small curling wave on the far side like the curly top on a Dairy Queen soft-serve ice cream cone. It was nothing to be concerned about, and yet … could it be an answer to prayer?

I edged the raft further to the left, pointing out something along the left bank to distract Grumbling-girl. As we drifted sideways and closer to the little out-of-place river-curl… wait for it…everyone saw it coming except the one so focused on herself that she was wasting a great day on the river. I think even the river was offended!

At the last moment, in the deceptively quiet water, I suddenly back-paddled and the raft swung sharply to the right and took the curl of the wave on the right front of the raft. With a resoundingly loud clapping sound, the river-curl reached up and slapped the unhappy teen full in the face, filled her open mouth with river water, and reddened her face with the sting. I caught her before she fell out of the raft. After the echoes of our spontaneous celebration of righteous judgment died away, an amazing change took place. It seemed that a sacred silence filled the air, the sun seemed warmer, the sky more brilliant blue behind the hills, and we worked together and conversed in happier tones the rest of the day…as even the girl seemed to snap out of her personal funk and join in the joyous journey with us.

When I think of this story, I laugh, but then I wonder what it will take for God to get me to snap out of my self-focus this week? What must I suddenly face before I join others in God’s journey? May it be something so small as a river-curl!

Psalm 97 "Theophany"

Psalm for Today = 97:5-7

By Ivar Leidus - Own work, 

CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=28877828

 

⁵ The mountains melt like wax before the Lord,

    before the Lord of all the earth.

⁶ The heavens proclaim his righteousness,

    and all the peoples see his glory.

⁷ All worshipers of images are put to shame,

    who make their boast in worthless idols;

    worship him, all you gods!

Comments:

In this psalm, we see Yahweh’s presence described in the language of theophany reminiscent of Mt. Sinai, where he gave Israel the Law. Theophany is the theological term used for a physical manifestation of the glorious presence of God. In Scripture, it is often seen as a powerful storm.

The “mountains melt like wax” has always made me wonder whether it represents his power that makes the rivers of lava flow down or a reference to his eternal nature that stands unchanged as the mountains erode like so much candle wax. Both images work well.

“The heavens proclaim” ... God’s creation reveals something about him…he is righteous and glorious as well as creative! Can the idols made in the image of merely created things stand in the presence of the Creator himself. No. So, this means I need to be sure that I am trusting in the Lord not boasting in worthless idols. Even the most permanent elements of creation are like running wax in his presence!

Psalm 96 Reasons to Praise

Psalm for Today = 96:2-6

Sing to the Lord, bless his name;

tell of his salvation from day to day. 

Declare his glory among the nations,

his marvelous works among all the peoples!

For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;

he is to be feared above all gods.

For all the gods of the peoples are worthless idols,

but the Lord made the heavens.

Splendor and majesty are before him;

strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.

Comments:

These few verses encourage to reader to bless, glorify, and praise the Lord! 

But l wonder how many reasons you can find for us to do so within these verses. 

Kind of like those pictures where you have to find all the hidden stuff…these verses give us a number of reasons to worship the Lord. 

How many can you find? The polls are now open…

 

Psalm 95 "Sheep of His Pasture"

Sheep on a hilltop.
Photo: Greg K Dueker

Psalm for Today = 95:6-9

“Oh come, let us worship and bow down;
                  let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!
For he is our God,
        and we are the people of his pasture,
                    and the sheep of his hand.

Today, if you hear his voice,
 do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah,
                             as on the day at Massah in the wilderness,
 when your fathers put me to the test
                          and put me to the proof,

                                                 though they had seen my work.” 

Comments:

Verse 6-7 are the words to one of my favorite old praise choruses. But verses 8-9 really provide an interesting context. The Israelites were rebellious sheep as evidenced in (Ex. 17 and Numbers 20) the two places mentioned. They might say that they belonged to the Lord…but often they didn’t live like it.

We too, consider ourselves to be God's people. We love Psalm 23 about the Lord being our shepherd...but if the Shepherd speaks to us today (and he does—this passage is quoted 3 times in Hebrews 3-4) do we harden our hearts, repeatedly put him to the test, or do we--like a lamb he has carried--follow his voice without hesitation?