pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

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An Extension

Readings: Psalms 108-112

‭Psalm 111:3 – “God’s deeds are majestic and glorious. God’s righteousness stands forever.”

Psalms 108 and 109 seek God’s presence in the struggles against enemies. Psalm 108 begins with praise to God. The psalmist’s “unwavering heart” will make music for all people, proclaiming God’s faithful love. The Psalm celebrates God choosing Gilead, Manasseh… and rejecting Moab, Edom… Yet the writer turns in verse 11, asking the familiar question: Where are you, God? The psalmist asks for God’s help because “human help is worthless.” Psalm 109 seeks God’s help too – just on a personal level. Verses 6-19 detail the “hateful words” spoken by the enemies. From a place of weakness the psalmist begs God to shame and disgrace his or her enemies.

Psalm 110 speaks of kingship. It invites God’s presence with the king, allowing the “mighty scepter” to reach far. The psalmist calls to mind God’s “solemn pledge” to establish the kings. The Psalm closes with a reminder that God’s justice will reign.

Psalms 111 and 112 are similar. They praise God’s work and the workings of a righteous life. There is a parallel here. In Psalm 111 the psalmist praises God’s works as magnificent, majestic, and glorious. God’s righteousness, mercy, and compassion are celebrated. God’s handiwork is honesty and justice. God brings redemption. It closes proverbially: “Fear of the Lord is where wisdom begins.” Psalm 112 echoes these traits of God. The people of God are to be an extension of God. We are to be righteous and generous, merciful and compassionate. In the end, then, we too will see our enemies’ defeat. Death and pain and oppression and struggle will be no more. Thanks be to God.

Prayer: Lord God, your presence is what we need. Whether beset by enemies or praising your glorious reign, we need your presence. On the stormy days and on the days of joy and peace, be present to us, O God. Guide us to walk and live faithfully, shining your love onto and into the world. Amen.


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Mercy and Justice

Reading: Psalm 123

Verse 3: “Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy on us.”

This week’s Psalm is a song of ascents. It would’ve most often been sung as people made their way up to the temple. As they walked and as they prepared themselves for worship, the opening verse would set the tone: “I lift my eyes to you, to you whose throne is in heaven.” Read today, these words feel like words spoken to a benevolent God who reigned from a distant place. Christ has not yet come to bring God’s presence among and within us.

Verse 2 can be difficult. Slaves and masters, maids and mistresses – these terms have negative connotations. We cannot dismiss them as “then” and skip on to verse 3. These relationships were common for a long time in our world and even in “Christian” circles. This is a sad truth of our common history. Here in the Psalm the writer parallels these relationships with their traditional relationship with God. It speaks to a dependence on the one with power, to a trust in their good care and benevolence. The psalmist looks to this God to show mercy to the people.

Verses 3 and 4 reveal the unfortunate reality of many power dynamics. The faithful in the Psalm are not the ones with power. They are enduring contempt and ridicule. Those with power are prideful and arrogant. The faithful call on a good God to have mercy, to end this injustice. At times we are in this position, calling in God to intervene on our behalf. In these times we too lift our eyes to heaven. But sometimes we are in an observers role – we are not the one with all the power but we do have some power to act. We see or become aware of an abuse of power. In these cases we cannot remain silent. Our good God calls on us to intercede on behalf of the oppressed, bringing justice and mercy to the situation. Stepping out in faith, the God of mercy will be with us.

Prayer: Lord God, walk with us day by day. In your presence, encourage us in those times of suffering. Be our defender, be our redeemer. And in your presence, O Lord, spur us to action when injustice and oppression are evident in our worlds. Empower us to work for justice and good. Walk with us day by day, O God. Amen.


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God’s Strength

Reading: Psalm 29: 4-11

Verse 9: “All in his temple cry, ‘Glory'”!

David observes the power of God as he sees it revealed in nature. The “voice” of God breaks the cedars and shakes the desert and strips the forest bare. David’s response is for all the people to declare, “Glory”! For the ancients there was a connection between God and all of life. For the Israelites, they worshipped one God. Yet forever all the cultures and people groups living around them worshiped many gods. Although the Israelites worshiped just God, they did connect disasters and other “bad” things to sinful behavior. In Jesus’ day we see this mindset or way of understanding the world in the way religious leaders viewed the blind or deaf or lepers as “unclean”. They or their parents or grandparents had sinned to cause said illness or malady. Similarly, people today can ask God “why?” questions after natural disasters. Others will blame or be angry at “God” for the flood or fire or storm that adversely affected them or their loved ones.

David sees the same power in the storms but instead of fear or anger he recognizes the power of God in the storm. In the storm he sees a parallel to God’s power. Seeing the power and beauty of God in the storm leads David to worship God for his majesty and strength. I can relate. I love to watch and sometimes even sit out in a thunderstorm. In the building of the storm’s power and then in the wind and rain and thunder and lightning, I sense God’s power and might. This too leads me to feel deeply connected to God and to feel in awe of his presence. As the Psalm closes, David makes his most important point.

In verse eleven David reminds us that “the Lord gives strength to his people”. The same physical power and might that I see in a thunderstorm, that same strength, is given to us in our spiritual life too. God’s strength within us will “bless his people with peace”. As people of faith, we face all sorts of things in life with a strength and peace that the world does not have, that the world does not understand. Thanks be to God for the strength and power and majesty that are ours through the Lord our God. All the glory to our almighty God!

Prayer: Loving God, as awed as I am by the energy and power of nature, I am humbled by the power and strength you give to me in this life. You lead me to places I could not go, you guide me through situations I cannot begin to navigate. Thank you for your presence in my life, O most awesome God. Amen.