Psalm 24

Psalm 24

In this beautiful Psalm we find great hope and comfort.  First we do well to ask, “Who is really in charge?”  We are never far from bad news.  As we look around us, it seems the whole world is overrun by evil forces doing evil things for evil purposes.  But David reminds us that God is the true owner of all the world.

Because of that, David reminds us of our call to holy living.  Purity is the password to the holy place where the Lord is and is worshiped.  Being distressed about evil is one thing, but being holy in the midst of it is another and is our calling.  

The Almighty Righteous King arrives, and we are awestruck.  Originally this was about the arrival of the Ark of the Covenant at Jerusalem.  But we see here a picture of the Second Advent of Christ (His glorious return).  The city gates are not big enough to allow the heroic warrior king to enter.  The top of the city gate, the head, will have to move or be lifted up to make room for the king to enter.  Imagine a beleaguered city’s celebration as their hero, their king, returns in total victory with His army following.  We shall see this when Christ returns.  But the news gets even better: we get to join the victory parade because our holy lives are our admission to join the procession.

“Lord, help me live a holy life in anticipation of the victory celebration at Christ’s return. AMEN.” 

Psalm 23

 Psalm 23

A councilor once reported that when he treated patients with mild depression or anxiety, he prescribed reading Psalm 23 twice a day, mornings and evenings.  Patients were instructed to not memorize and recite the Psalm but to carefully, intentionally, and slowly read it.  He reported that the vast majority of those who did as directed experienced improvement or, in many cases, complete alleviation of their symptoms.

This ought not surprise us.  Peace of heart and soul would be the result as we realize that the Lord is in control (vs. 1-3).  He is not distant but close, and if we are close to Him, we are in a good place.  We also see He is actually actively caring for us (vs 4-5). Even in the worst of circumstances, He is actively shepherding us.  Beyond all this, He wants to keep us close and safe (v. 6).  “Goodness and mercy” follow us.  “Follow” is the word that can describe how a wolf tracks and pursues prey.  Think of ‘goodness’ and ‘mercy’ as two sheepdogs bringing us back to the shepherd when and if we wander off.  But we are not left in a pen but live in the house.  With such a life, how could depression and anxiety maintain their control?

“Lord, help me to realize the great life I have as a sheep in Your care. AMEN.”

Psalm 22

 Psalm 22

As we read the Psalm, it feels as if the writer was an eyewitness to the execution of Jesus. The actions of the religious leaders and even the Roman soldiers were described in amazing detail over a thousand years before the event. The suffering subject of this psalm describes himself as forsaken, a worm, a reproach, disjointed, pierced, and with his garments taken.

With this in mind, the second half of the Psalm makes no sense without knowing about Jesus's death, burial, and resurrection. The hopeful tones of verses 22 through 31 are incongruent with the suffering in verses 1 to 21. Until they are given meaning in the Lord's victory at the cross and on Easter. It is the death, burial, and resurrection that gives this psalm and all of scripture and all of life meaning. The last section, verses 25 to 31, is even descriptive of the establishment of the church and her worldwide expansion. The “rejected one” of the first verse results in all the world turning to the Lord in verse 27. How is this possible? Because this is about Jesus.

“Lord, thank you for the hope we have in Christ. AMEN.”

Psalm 21

 Psalm 21

We spend too much time worrying about the plans and activities of evil people. Fear seems to consume our political system and our religious conflicts. And while we are familiar with the picture of God burning up the evil, from verse 9 we get a different perspective. The enemies of God become a blazing oven. This is not a description of a fire put on a pile of rubbish in order to burn it. What is pictured here is a portable oven or fire pot.  There are three interesting implications. First, the actions of evil people are self-destructive. The burning wood in the oven will not and cannot last. The evil schemes of evil men will one day be of no more consequence than ash. Second, not only do evil people consume themselves, but they also consume each other. Evil people may plot against God and His people, but sooner or later they always turn on each other. Third, they are accomplishing God's purpose. The actions of evil people will ultimately be used by God for His glory and purposes. Rather than fretting about the evil forces, we ought to trust in God's authority and strength. 

“Lord, turn my heart away from fear of evil people to trusting You. AMEN.”

Psalm 20

Psalm 20

Taken out of context, verse 4 sounds like a blank check from God or perhaps a vague wistfulness that is actually without substance. What if my heart's desire is to rob a bank and never get caught, to find an illicit lover that will never betray me, or to kill someone I hate and never be convicted?  But the context of verse 3 is about acceptable worship. Worship and prayer cannot be separated. Worship is more than just a proper ritual. Right worship always begins with a right heart.

We treat prayer as an irrefutable wish by which we can have God's power at our disposal. Frankly, that is foolishness from an evil heart. Our approach needs to be that we have our hearts so aligned with God that the desire of our hearts is the same as the desire of His. When we want what he wants and worship, ask, seek, and knock for it, he moves. Our problem is that we don't want what God wants. Our sinful nature wants to use God's power to satisfy itself, so we pray for these kinds of things, and then we wonder why God doesn't move on our behalf. 

“God, make my heart like Yours so that I will ask for what You want. AMEN.”

Psalm 19

 Psalm 19

There are two witnesses to testify to our God: creation and covenant. Both are praised and examined in this Psalm. In verses one through six, David speaks of creation, specifically the heavens and their witness to the Creator. In this half of the poem, God is referred to as Elohim, the name associated with creation. Both day and night speak without words or specific language, but with wonderful eloquence about God and His greatness. The vastness of the universe alone boggles the mind. The power of the sun with trillions of other stars out in the universe overwhelms us. All this was made out of nothing without struggle. How great is the Creator that made this existence?

All creation speaks of His glory and power, but it tells us nothing of His character. The second part of this poem tells us about God via His covenant. This is more than, but not less than, the word of God.  Which at the time of the composition was incomplete. We will not belabor at this point the beauty of the life described in verses 7 through 13, which is the relationship with God that comes by following the word of God. We see six descriptions of the word of God, and we see six benefits that flow from it. So great is the word of God lived out in a covenant that it protects us from the sins we are unaware of and from the sins, known to us, that would presume upon God’s mercy.

Verse 14 is a beautiful and powerful prayer. But how can our hearts and words be pleasing to God? By filling them both with the thoughts and the beauty of God’s creation and covenant.

“Lord, help me to stand in awe of You as I learn from creation and covenant. AMEN”

Psalm 18:20-50

 Psalm 18:20-50

In hindsight we realize doing the right thing is always best.  How often do we look back on our righteous good behavior and say, “I wish I had been a lowlife”? In retrospect we see the goodness and beauty of righteousness.  We have a little more trouble seeing it in the future.  Psalm 18 is written from the hindsight perspective.  In verses 20 to 45, David recalls his righteous behavior, God's holiness, and God's provision for David's victory. and in verses 46 to 50 there is a brief but beautiful song of praise for God's deliverance.

All this is possible because David took a view of the beauty of righteousness in advance. There is a single line so small that it might escape our notice if we are not careful. In verse 23 David says he was blameless or complete or living in integrity, and he has kept himself from iniquity. Notice that David is self-aware; he knows where his problems lie. He is taking responsibility to be righteous. He isn't trusting society, circumstances, or people; he says, “my iniquity.” At this point perhaps David was acutely aware of a flaw in his character. Before we can enjoy the beauty of righteousness in hindsight, we have to see ourselves honestly.

“Lord, give me clarity as I look at myself. AMEN.”