Psalm 88

 Psalm 88

The historic setting for this Psalm is all but impossible to determine.  However, the theme is nearly universal: unrelenting hardship that feels like our undoing.  

By nature humans want a happy ending or at the very least a glimmer of hope that a happy ending is possible.  We don’t see that in this Psalm.  Some scholars have supposed that the psalm was composed by someone who was in the late stages of leprosy and was in isolation.  Such a condition is a condition without hope.

So what do we make of this very dark Psalm?  In spite of relentless misery, and this Psalm is a poem about misery, the author is determined in prayer.  The 1st two verses tell of someone who has, through what appears to be a lifetime of misery, been relentless in prayers.  Our tendency is to think and expect that what we call ‘good’ will happen to us if we pray hard enough and long enough.  But that may not be true. This Psalm is a powerful reminder that prayer, or life for that matter, isn’t about what we expect or want.

“Lord, help me to be relentless in prayer.  More than changing my circumstances, I ask that You will change me. AMEN”

Sunday after Easter

It is the Sunday after Easter, and many in church leadership will anticipate today, asking, "How many of our Easter visitors will show up again this Sunday?" When I was in the located ministry, my approach was to see Easter attendance as the benchmark for the following year. If our average attendance was 75 and Easter was 95 for year 'A,' then my goal was to see the average attendance for year 'B' be 95. We were not always successful, but it was a helpful target. While attendance was never a perfect measure of the life of a church, it has its uses. But COVID and online church have changed the way we see being with other believers.

On a related subject, a story from a friend serving faithfully in his congregation. His wife is a public school teacher teaching early elementary children. The week before Easter she asked her students, "What is Easter about?" Of the 32 students in her care, only two knew anything about the resurrection of Jesus. For all the other students, the only message of Easter was candy, bunnies, and eggs. These are the kids born on the onset of the COVID scare. I believe there is a relationship here. The rhythm and rituals of life teach our children more than the lessons. Our disconnect from being with believers can't help but dumb down everyone. Watching service online reduces the engagement in faith to the level of sports highlights or funny cat videos.

So what do we do? The gathering of God's people will not happen because of a "Get back to church" campaign. We will grow disciples the way we make disciples. We will do that by the relationship connection that happens face-to-face. The Sunday after Easter, the lesson is in the recapitulation of the event: Jesus telling Mary. Each one of us is telling one believer, "We need this friendship."

In the Cause of Christ

Charlie

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Psalm 87

 Psalm 87

In almost all areas of life we esteem the self-made man, who, from a humble beginning with no advantages, obtains success in his/her given field. While at the same time are often hostile towards the idea of a privileged position because of being born into that privileged place. We sometimes do this in matters of spirituality as well. There is a certain allure to the testimony of the Christian who grew up in a wicked, crazy, and dysfunctional home and yet becomes a solid, spiritually mature saint. If we take this as the norm to a radical conclusion, every other generation needs to be wicked. 

This abrupt psalm knows nothing of disdain for privileged birth. Instead this song praises the very idea of an advantaged position afforded by birth. Before the days of a synagogue, Jews living some distance from Jerusalem might see the temple only occasionally. The physical presence of a temple, the reminder of God's covenant, calling, and intervention for His people, could only be seen after a long and expensive pilgrimage. For Jews living far from Jerusalem, this was a rare privilege that was enjoyed less often than it would be enjoyed by the poorest dweller of the city of Jerusalem. Even those Jews born in Jerusalem and who had emigrated far from home had carried in their hearts and memory the advantage of the experience of living near the temple.

As incredibly frustrating and irritating as the church (and by this we of course mean the people, not the building) can be, there is, or at least should be, a profound advantage of being born and growing up in the company of God's people. This Psalm is a call for the church to live to the highest standard in our fellowship. Damage done by the people of the church, which undermines the privilege of being in the church, is unconscionable. There ought to be nothing greater than living in the close press of God’s people. The person born into and growing up in the community of a people who love God genuinely and live that out is the highest, privileged birth that one could ever enjoy.

"Lord, help me to love the privileged position of being part of a community of faith. AMEN"

Psalm 86

 Psalm 86

Why appeal to God for help? There are two reasons an appeal to God is entirely reasonable. First is that God is good. In several places the psalmists expressed confidence in the loving, gracious, and kind nature of God, for example, verses 5 and 13. There's no point in an appeal to someone who is mean, evil, or vindictive. Second, God is able. The psalmist expresses the power of God to act in verses 8 and 10. It is useless to appeal to someone who is powerless to help. Because God is both supremely good and almighty, it is reasonable to appeal to Him; in fact, it is the only logical thing to do.

There is in verse 17 a wonderful picture. The NASB says, ‘...show me a sign for good.” That would better be translated. “fix an honorable mark or token of your name on me”. Suppose an ambassador from a great and mighty king goes to a city where he is personally unknown. He would need a token or mark indicating that he is the king's servant. For us, what is the mark that we as individuals or as a community represent our King? “By this all men will know you are my followers, that you…” 

“Lord, may the love we express be powerful evidence that we are Your people. AMEN”

Psalm 85

 Psalm 85

Some time ago a phrase became popular in the Christian subculture that was used so much that it became a cliché to the point of meaninglessness.  The phrase “It’s a God thing” was meant to express God’s divine care and supervision and was roughly equivalent to Providence, but was much cooler and less theologically precise and stuffy.  It was used for circumstances which resulted in a particularly beneficial event to a ministry.  But as with any overused adage it decayed to banality.  “It’s a God thing” degenerated to the point that finding a parking place near a store entrance was “a God thing”.  It was never applied to the parking place at the outer edge of the parking lot.   But misuse and misunderstanding doesn’t mean it never happens. There are those things that only God can do and that is the time to say, “It’s a God thing!”

This is a Psalm of praise for God’s bringing of the exiles back from captivity.  This moment in God’s salvation history is filled with wonder and marvel, but one specific verse expresses a “God thing” in its purest and richest form, verse 10.  The couplets are not opposite to each other, but can be in conflict.  

In this verse, we see that Mercy and Truth have embraced each other like friends long separated.  It is almost as if they have lost contact and have a happy and unexpected meeting.  But this happy meeting has a conflict.  The truth of the matter is we are guilty; we deserve punishment, wrath, exile and even death.  But while horrifically guilty, Lovingkindness deeply desires that we be exempt from the penalty of our guilt.  Truth is on the other side and requires our punishment. Truth and Lovingkindness are like a prosecutor and a defense attorney who were undergrad fraternity brothers suddenly reunited. They hold the court papers that argue the opposite sides of the case, but they are still old friends hugging and laughing and talking a mile a minute oblivious to the others around them.  

Righteousness and Peace are even closer; they kiss.  Often Righteousness, or shall we say Justice, and Peace do not get along very well.  Justice demands that the wicked man be arrested, placed in handcuffs put in the squad car, and transported to jail.  Anyone who has seen reality TV police shows can testify that ‘Shalom; (tranquility, a sense of well-being, peace or wholeness) rarely accompanies an arrest.  Justice is breathless and sweaty from the chase; his temper while controlled is short.  The batons, taser, pepper spray, and sidearm do not invite tender affection, but demand compliance.  If the wicked man is not restrained and controlled there is no justice for the victim.  Sometimes justice demands more than a Peace Officer; it demands bombers and artillery, invasions and tanks.  Justice for enslaved Europe demanded that Chamberlin’s “peace in our time” give way to the hell of World War Two.  Here again we see a reunion that looks more like a reunion of separated lovers rather than a landing at Normandy.  Peace and Righteousness are kissing; this is no perfunctory greeting but the outward expression of a powerful, deep love.

In some way the return of the exiles from Babylonian captivity saw these two couples in blissful union.  That was a mystery for those who returned.  They would never be able to work out the equation by which God made it all fit together.  The return of the exiles did something more.  It prefigured the day when on the cross God could bring together the apparently conflicting demands of Mercy, Truth, Righteousness and Peace.  Consider the wonder you would feel if you were there in an airport concourse, you wore the handcuffs, you were being extradited for a trial you knew you would lose and you saw the reunion.  The loud, happy foursome in genuine affection touches, holds, and laughs together.  They look at you and you know it will be more than all right; it will be more than you can imagine.  That is the marvel of the cross, which is something only God can do, that is the real “God Thing”.

“Thank You, Lord, that the conflict realities of my situation were resolved in the cross. AMEN”

Psalm 84

 Psalm 84

One of the great beauties of the Old Testament is that it is filled with symbols, types, and tangible prophecies that find their fulfillment in the New Testament. The Tabernacle and the Temple were types of the church. Far too often we associate the church with a building. But the church is the community of people who have God, in the person of the Holy Spirit, dwelling in them. As God dwelt in the temple, He now dwells in Christians.

With that in mind, we see a beautiful portrayal of a people who deeply desire to be together. This Psalm is full of beautiful pictures and illusions that, when studied, enrich our understanding of the church. One in particular comes to us in verse 5. The pilgrimage to Jerusalem could be long, hard, and even dangerous. But for some the road to the temple was always in their heart. Of the mountain folk of Eastern Kentucky it is said, “They are either homesick or going home.” That is the description here. The devout Jew was either homesick or was on his way to Jerusalem. That's how it ought to be for us in our desire to be with the company of worshiping Christians. 

“Lord, help me remain homesick for the family of faith. AMEN.”

Psalm 83

 Psalm 83

When it comes to leaving vengeance to God, it is sometimes uncomfortable.  We may feel that God is not very good at justice, that He is too lenient.  We can even feel that somehow Grace has short-circuited Justice.

However, we may not realize the ultimate purpose of God's divine justice. There is the verse in this Psalm that is a clear and powerful explanation of God's justice. Verses 13-17 are a description of the results of God's intentions for justice. The word picture is not pretty; rather, it is aggressive and violent. This is the sort of thing we like when it comes to Divine justice. But there's a key clause that explains the “why.” Without that key phrase we will miss so much. The second line of verse 16 needs to be the focal point of our view of divine justice: “that they may seek thy name, oh Lord.”

The wrath of God is not just retributive; it is also redemptive. Even in His wrath God is working to bring people to Himself. Men may reject this ‘last-resort’ kind of outreach, but all the same, God is hoping to rescue them. This is why we must leave vengeance in the hands of God.

“Lord, than You that you use every available means to rescue wicked people, like me. AMEN”