Year: 2017

For this blog today all I can comment on are the last two days.  The psalm begins by speaking against all those who would act against the desires of the Lord.  But then he transitions quickly to speak about the faithfulness of the Lord, how precious is His steadfast love.  It just seems that no matter what takes place, David, the writer of the psalms just can’t seem to forget that God remains faithful forever.  

We’ve had an emotionally draining, but spiritually uplifting, couple of days here at First Presbyterian Church.  I have never heard the church sing quite the way that it sang on Saturday.  The walls were still shaking on Sunday.  But it is in these times that we are reminded that we are church, that we are the people of God.  

So do you get the sense that at the beginning of the psalm the author is asking God to do some really not nice things to his enemies?  Go ahead and look at vs 1-8 and you hear how the author beseeches God to rise up and defend him and to do some not nice things to those who would do not nice things to him.  Okay, so this is probably where I need to quote my Savior Jesus who said in Matthew 5:38-48 to turn the other cheek.  You have a whole listing of opportunities that we need to take to love our enemy.  It is quite different from today’s psalm.  The author also includes a type of quid pro quo where he says in vs.9 (if you do these awful things to my enemies) “then my soul shall rejoice in the Lord.” The assumption is that if God, you do not do these things, then maybe I’ll just keep my rejoicing to myself.

It is a very human prayer and a very human emotion, but one that we must avoid.  We have to be more like Matthew 5 people than Psalm 35 people.  As the psalm continues you see that the author points out the times that he was a neighbor to them.  He prayed for their healing, and they repaid him by ridiculing him and causing him pain and suffering.  As he continues on in this psalm y0u can almost hear him pointing out that his enemies are not doing the things that we were encouraged to do yesterday in Psalm 34.  His enemies do not keep their tongue from evil (vs.16), nor seek peace and pursue it (vs.20), they speak deceit (vs.20).

The author tells the Lord to wake up just like in I Kings 18 where Elijah battles the prophets of Baal and as Baal is proven to be impotent the prophet states in vs.27 “pray louder for if he is really a god maybe he is sleeping.”  It seems as if in vs.23 the author has gotten to the end of his rope and calls out to the Lord to wake up.  Even if elsewhere later on in psalm 121 we read that the Lord does not slumber or sleep.  But sometimes in our frustrations we say things we don’t mean to say.  

The psalmist ends with a call for all those who are on his side to rejoice with him, but only when the Lord will respond.  The assumption is that the Lord will respond even if he has not yet.  All the way to vs.28 we read then my tongue  shall tell of your righteousness.  Not until then.  I pray that we will be able to tell of the Lord’s righteousness even as we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, and even when our “enemies” have mocked us beyond our ability to take.  I pray that we don’t have to wait to taste that the Lord is God before we tell of His goodness.

Like so many of the psalms, this one has a specific context within the Bible.  You need to turn to I Samuel 21 and read the chapter.  Here we find David, before he becomes king, fleeing from Saul who is out to kill him.  Ahimelech was a priest who knew David and respected him and gave him food even from the temple.  But when David arrives at Gath he recognizes that the king of Gath is an ally of Saul and would probably look to kill him just as Saul was looking to kill him.  The king of Gath knew that David was a dangerous man and capable of defeating even the most seasoned soldiers.  So he posed a threat to the king.  In order to escape harm from the king, because David had no weapons, he pretended to be crazy and even foamed at the mouth to escape the king from thinking that he might be dangerous to his people.  It worked with the king saying: I don’t need one more crazy person around here.  David escapes from this king who was a potential threat by pretending that he was crazy.

The psalm says that it is within this context that it was written.  Now let’s see why it has this as a prelude to the psalm.  Well, I just read through it and can’t really picture David hanging out in the caves after foaming at the mouth to pretend an illness writing this psalm.  But, I do love vs.8 where we have a really interesting command to “taste and see that the Lord is good.”  We aren’t often commanded to taste in order to identify the presence of the Lord.  We are told to see, we are told to hear, we are told to speak, but normally not taste.  I do love that image.

I get more of a sense from this psalm that David is giving advice to those who are coming up behind him on how to live life.  So, I can see him surrounded by young soldiers who had followed him away from Saul and telling them in vs.11: “I will teach you the fear of the Lord.”  How do you enjoy the good that God has provided you to enjoy?  Vs.12 starts the advice by saying: “Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking deceit. Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace and pursue it.”

So today I want you to try to follow that advice.  Taste and see that the Lord is good.  The way that you can do that is by keeping your tongue from evil.  Do not say one negative thing today about anyone.  That’s a challenge!  Keep your lips from speaking deceit.  Try to make it through today without saying something that is untrue.  It might be harder than it sounds.  Depart from evil.  Allow yourself to flee from temptation whatever that may look like.  Identify the sin in your life which at times can overtake you and block it out today, just today for now.  Do good.  Be involved in one random act of kindness today, whatever that may look like.  Surprise someone with joy so that they can be thankful.  Seek peace.  What an appropriate one for today.  Don’t argue with anyone about politics today.  Allow your presence to be one that is uplifting and that encourages people to see you as a messenger of peace.  Pursue that peace until you find it.

That’s quite a bit of homework.  I know that you can do it and this psalm encourages us to be involved in that kind of life.

We once again find a reference to God creating with His Word.  But this time the psalmist includes the fact that the breath of God was also involved.  You can see that in vs.6.  So, whether you are aware of it or not, vs.6 contains the entire Trinity.  We saw previously that when we talk about the Word, we are talking about the Son in the Trinity.  We know this because of John 1 where Jesus is referred to as the Word.  Then, when we read about the breath of God it is in Hebrew the word ruach.  Ruach is a word that means breath, air, or spirit.  That’s right, spirit is also mentioned in vs.6.  We find then the presence of the Holy Spirit also in this verse.  So our theological dogma that God is manifested in trinitarian presence is supported by this psalm.  

This psalm is without a doubt one of thanksgiving.  But it is also a kingly psalm where we read that the presence of the Lord is unmistakeable and unshakeable.  It is important to know that God remains enthroned even while around us it seems as if we don’t know who is in power.  This is important because one can easily lose hope and think that God has decided to leave us up to our own doings without being involved in anything at all.  This psalm says no, He remains enthroned and actively involved in all that happens on this earth and in our lives.  That’s nice to know.

There are some great references in this psalm.  Did you catch vs.9 which encourages us not to be like the horse or the mule, without understanding?  I know from talking with people who know (because I don’t know) that sheep tend to be one of the least responsive and, dare I say, the least intelligent animals.  Compared to a sheep, a horse is a genius.  But do you notice what animal we are often referred to in the Bible?  If the Lord is our shepherd, then who are we?  We are like the sheep who have gone astray.  I am positive that the Lord has known the intelligence of sheep and has called us in Scripture a very appropriate animal.  All you have to do is look at the book of Judges and the recurring line: “And the people did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.”  We don’t ever learn, do we?

But on to the psalm.  This is a great psalm for lent because it does speak about the joy that we receive in knowing that our sin is forgiven.  You see the theme of the forgiveness of sin that takes us from vs.1-5 where he tells us that we have to acknowledge our sin before the Lord and He will forgive our guilt.  It is a psalm that focuses on the forgiveness that the Lord provides and ends with a reminder that our hope is found in the Lord and it is in him that we are able to rejoice.

As you read through this psalm you will find at least one verse that strikes a familiar note.  Look at vs.5 and you will find its counterpart in Luke 23:46 where Jesus is on the cross and he utters his final words.  It is a poignant psalm for those of us who consider ourselves disciples of Jesus Christ.  It is a time when Jesus recognizes that no one else is going to be able to go through what he is going through.  When he commits his spirit to his Father, we fully recognize that we are talking about the Holy Spirit.  

You can break down this psalm into various verses and find their themes well represented.  Vs.1-8 we find the author reinforcing his commitment to the Lord, and, probably more importantly, the Lord’s commitment to him.  He lists the various time that God did not, and will not, abandon him.  He is able to commit his spirit to the Lord because he knows that his spirit is already in the hands of the Lord.  

Then in vs.9-18 you see the psalmist list the troubles that he is facing which are many.  Then we transition again from vs.19-24 where we read about the goodness of the Lord and his faithfulness to all generations.  I love vs. 24 because it does really harken back to psalm 27:14 which tells us: Wait for the Lord; be strong and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!

So really this psalm has all the ebbs and the flows of our life where we find ourselves convinced of God’s presence and faithfulness.  But then something happens and that conviction changes and we just find ourselves beset by problems and troubles and the waters just seem to rise too high for us to keep our head above.  Those times then transition, we hope, to God drawing us out of the miry pit and being able to see around us with a perspective of one who has been through it and back.  That perspective is so valuable and so incredibly useful in our life journey.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AU3hT5aGljE

This song comes to mind when I read this Psalm.  

There are some conflicting titles to this psalm.  The non Scriptural title is: “Thanksgiving for recovery from grave illness”.  There is definitely a flow where there is a calling out to the Lord and then there is a recognition that God has answered the prayer and that there is healing.  But that is not the Hebrew title, it is one that we have imposed on this psalm.  Rather, the Hebrew title is: A song at the dedication of the temple.  That context is a little more difficult to decipher, but after a while it becomes obvious.

We need to remember that David never built the temple.  He wanted to, but because of his sin he was prevented from building it.  His son through Bathsheba, Solomon, ended up building the temple in Jerusalem.  So why would this be titled a song at the dedication of the temple when David was not present to dedicate the temple?  I am sure that this psalm written by David was used at the dedication even if it was not written for the dedication.  We see that in all sorts of different contexts where works are used which were not originally intended for that use.  Let’s look at the psalm.

Vss. 4-5 are well known and they are verses which will remain for us eternally.  We know that pain is but a moment, but then joy will come in the morning.  We know that the difficulties of this life do not last…well, a lifetime.  They will last for a moment and then the Spirit of the Lord will break through.  Vss. 11-12 are also unique as we see the conversion of mourning to dancing, and sackcloth to joy.  They are great images that can remain with us when we face mourning and grieving and know that it can be transformed into joy and dancing.  It may take a while, the evening could be a very, very long evening, but we know that morning will eventually come.

When the psalmist uses the word “ascribe” we ought to understand him basically saying: recognize that the Lord has strength.  It is a call to acknowledge who God is.  We are not able to give God anything.  We cannot be the ones who give him strength, we cannot give him glory as if it is ours to give or as if it is ours to own and then dole out as we please.  God embodies glory, strength, honor, all of those things.  We are only able to recognize it.  

Are you able to identify the one word that is used more than any other in this psalm?  Do you see the word voice?  Seven times in this psalm the word voice is used.  We see the voice of God consistently in Scripture and it is a concept that we ought to look at more closely.  Do you remember how God created the heavens and the earth?  Look  back at Genesis 1 and what you will see is a repetition of these words:  “And God said…”, from the mouth of God, the voice of God when it speaks, creates.  This is crucial not just for the Old Testament understanding of who God is, but even in the Old Testament.

Do you remember how Jesus is identified in John 1?  In the beginning was the…Word.  Again, the voice of God speaks and he comes to take on human flesh in the incarnation.  The voice of God speaks and we see Him create powerfully and become one of us.  The psalmist uses the voice of God to describe a creative strength that is beyond measure and beyond what we are able to comprehend.  

At the end of this psalm after we have seen the amazing marvelous things that God is able to do, the Psalmist asks that we might be able to draw from some of that glory and in turn receive some of that blessing from that power.  The author asks for strength and peace.  We don’t find a request for riches or celebrity status, but rather for strength and peace.  What a humble request.  That we may all wish the same.

The flow of this psalm is one where the author cries out to the Lord for help, look at vs.1 and then the transition happens in vs.6 where we hear that God has heard the his pleadings and responded to his cries.  You can follow from vss. 1-2 a beseeching from the author that is gutfelt and has deep emotional ties with commands: “do not refuse to hear me”, “hear the voice of my supplication”.  

This then transitions to a celebration that the Lord has listened and so as a result I am helped.  To recognize that we are helped by God can only produce a heart which exults and a song of thanksgiving.  

I have used this Psalm often in situations where I am ministering to a family who simply has not heard an answer to prayer after a prolonged crisis or difficulty.  The last two verses, 13-14, where we are encouraged to “Wait for the Lord”, is powerful.  These last two verses allow us to hang our hat on the hope that we will all see the goodness of the Lord.  This is true even if right now that goodness feels really, really far away.  

There are a number of parallel verses in this psalm to Psalm 23.  If you look at vs.4 we hear that the Lord will allow me to live in his house all the days of my life.  This should bring us back to Psalm 23:6 which is basically the same statement.  We will live in the house of the Lord forever.  This also brings to mind the words of Jesus in John 14:2 where he promises that the Lord has prepared for each one of us a room in his house, or as the KJV states, a “mansion”.

Some of you might find vs. 10 as somewhat jarring.  We read: “If my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will take me up.”  This is not very different from Jesus’ words in Luke 14:26 which states: “Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciples.”  Don’t miss vs.27 where he continues: “Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.”  So we find that there is a cost to discipleship which often we don’t take into consideration once we set sail on this journey.  Many times we think that being a disciple is all benefit and there is no sacrifice or demands on us.  That simply is not the case, Jesus tells us.  Now the psalmist doesn’t say all this, but we do find it in Luke and other Scriptures that we just lifted up.  

The psalmist is merely lifting up what could potentially be the worst case scenario that he can image.  What would happen if my father and mother would turn their back on me, I can’t imagine it, but what if that were to happen?  The Lord would still take me up.  Even if the Lord is angry with us He will not turn us away.  God will never forsake us, God will never cast us off, God is my salvation, my light, of whom shall I be afraid?  

Today is a joyous day for First Presbyterian.  We have sent off one of the saints to be with Jesus.  John Faltin saw the face of his Savior this morning just before 9am.  He would have told me that with a smile that it was before I was even awake.  I loved John, went fishing with him, went to a number of baseball games with him, shared a tent with him in the deserts of the Middle East, leaned on him for insight and guidance.  He was a presence in my life and definitely a presence in the life of the church.  But for him I can see vs.6 of this psalm being realized.  I’ll leave you with this: “Now my head is lifted up above my enemies all around me, and I will offer in his tent sacrifices with shouts of joy; I will sing and make melody to the Lord.”