Thursday, November 28, 2019

Giving Thanks with David - Psalm 118

Psalm 118 is one of my favorites! I read it when I want to remember what God has done for me. What better day is there to do that than Thanksgiving?

We'll walk through the entire Psalm together. There's going to be a lot of other Bible verses scattered in there, too, so settle back for a good read!

Verse 1 (Verse images are all from NIV. They are also linked with the Bible website, so if you click on them, you'll be taken there): 
"His love endures forever". David refers to this aspect of God quite often. I think it's the quality that awed him the most. It originates in Exodus 34, when God revealed himself to Moses. I love how in that moment, when he's introducing himself to his people, this is how God describes himself:
"The Lord passed in front of Moses, calling out, “Yahweh! The Lord! The God of compassion and mercy! I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness. I lavish unfailing love to a thousand generations. I forgive iniquity, rebellion, and sin. But I do not excuse the guilty. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children and grandchildren; the entire family is affected— even children in the third and fourth generations.”

Now that seems reason enough to praise God, don't you think? It describes his love, and his goodness! But God doesn't have just a good character, he also has a good plan. He is good, and he acts good. Take a look at Romans:
"And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory."

Verses 2-4: 
I read this as: "Let those whom God has chosen thank him for his love, and let those who have chosen God thank him for his love."  Let us remember that because of Jesus we have been accepted into the very nation that God called his special possession. With that in mind, read the following...
"Then Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain and said, “This is what you are to say to the descendants of Jacob and what you are to tell the people of Israel: ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites.” '

"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. "

We, as God's chosen people, praise him for everything he has done! In order to do that more fully, the Psalm takes us through a few examples. With the next verse, we now start to look through the ways that God has proved his unfailing love and goodness to us.

Verse 5:
I don't know about you, but for me there's never been a time when I've reached out to God and come back empty-handed. Let us also remember the truly hopeless situation we were in before God sent Jesus, and how God answered that need by setting free all who would cry out to him: 
"When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation."

Verses 6-7: 
This truth about God is one of the most incredible I can think of. God isn't passive towards us. He has chosen to be intimately informed, and infinitely involved in our lives. He is with us in every moment. Nothing proves this so well as God's gift of the Holy Spirit:
“If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.” '

Jesus didn't leave us alone when he went to be with the Father. He sent us the Holy Spirit. And because he did, we don't have to go to a tent to meet with God. Nor do we have to visit a building. We don't even have to go and see a specific person, because God's own Spirit lives inside the hearts of all who have accepted him. What a privilege! 

Looking back up at the verse from Psalm 118, I also notice that I don't really have very many enemies. I get along with pretty much everyone in my life. And even if there's someone I don't get along with, I'm not looking to triumph over them. However, even though we don't have physical enemies, we do have spiritual ones:
"For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."

Those spiritual forces are our true enemies. And they may come at us with fears, worries, distractions, ridicule, and even pain. But because of what God has done, we can look on them with triumph. Because we already know who wins the war. Their time on the earth is limited, and then we will live in absolute peace.
"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."

We have no need to be afraid. The Lord of Heaven's Armies is on our side, and he will never ever leave us.

Verses 8-9: 
Think about all the spectacular ways that God delivered Israel from their enemies! David with Goliath (1 Samuel 17), for example. Also, the time he sent an angel to Hezekiah's enemies who slayed 185,000 men in one night (2 Kings 19). It truly is best to rely on God!
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil."

"Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. They are brought to their knees and fall, but we rise up and stand firm."

Verses 10-13:
Another weapon that is often brought against us is lies. Lies that are spoken to us, and lies that are spoken about us. I often feel as if I'm surrounded by lies on all sides. Like they're "swarming around me like bees". But I don't have to tolerate them. I don't have to listen to those voices. The only voice that should matter to me is the voice of my Shepherd. He only speaks the truth, and he alone speaks the truth. So how do we handle the lies? Cut them off! See James 4:7 for lies we hear, and Matthew 10:24-31 for lies spoken about us:
'Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. '
James 4:7 NIV

When we're submitted to God, every part of us is included in the bargain. That means there's no vacancy for the devil.

“The student is not above the teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for students to be like their teachers, and servants like their masters. If the head of the house has been called Beelzebul, how much more the members of his household! So do not be afraid of them, for there is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows."

We have no need to be surprised when our reputations are slandered. Jesus himself was called the prince of demons be the world. How much more should we who follow him be misunderstood or maliciously slandered! But that doesn't mean we lose hope. We have value that no man can take away. And every lie will eventually be exposed by the light, and the truth will be revealed. So let's not let the lies slow us down. And let's praise our Father of Lights and our Good Shepherd for the way he leads us down the path of truth, and for the value he has given us!

Verse 14: 
David knew the Scriptures very well. Here is another throwback to Israel's deliverance from Egypt, and is actually a direct quote from the song of Moses that he sings after Israel crosses the Red Sea (Exodus 15:2). 
The events of the first Passover, followed by the crossing of the Red Sea, and finally the claiming of the Promised Land, have been acclaimed by scholars as one of the greatest pictures in the entire Bible of Jesus and his work for us. I encourage you to read through the entire song in Exodus 15, and let it echo in your heart as you consider the blood that was shed for you, and the baptism you received when you crossed from death to life. Thank God for the amazing things he's done! Consider also the Promised Land that he is guiding us to even now. He knows the path he is bringing us on, and he won't abandon us, no matter how many mistakes we make. 
And remember that our experience--our covenant--is of infinite more worth than even the Israelites received in the wilderness. For, again, God is not separated from us even by a tent, a curtain, or a veil. He lives inside our very hearts, and he is working in us to produce the very life of his Son, just we we already saw in Romans 8:28-30. (See the discourse in Hebrews 8 for more about the superiority of our covenant to the first one).

Verses 15-18: 
Praise God for what he has done! He has truly brought us "from death to life":
“Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life. Very truly I tell you, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live."

Verses 19-21: 
Let us not forget that if we wish to be considered "righteous" by God, there is only one way. And that is Jesus.
"Jesus answered, 'I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.'"
John 14:6 NIV

But, that one way is open to us! He hasn't just saved us, he has become our salvation!
"Jesus said again, 'Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.'"

Verses 22-24: 
There are many sections in scripture that link this verse with Jesus (Matthew 21:42-44; Acts 4:10-12; 1 Peter 2:4-8). I have nothing really to add to what Peter, Paul, and Jesus say about Jesus being "the stone the builders rejected". I will say this, though: The Capstone is also the Master Builder. He is building out of us a house (1 Peter 2:4-5), a temple (1 Corinthians 6:19-20), a building (1 Corinthians 3:9-13), and a Church (Matthew 16:18). He is the foundation, we're the bricks. He is the builder, not us, so let us, again, rely on his skill, not our own:
"Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain."

He does this work day by day. So today, let's rejoice in it!

Verses 25-27: 
"O Lord, save us!" This makes me think of two things: 
First: Jesus's name means "The Lord Saves". 

Second: the cry of the crowd at the Triumphal Entry was "Hosanna!" Which means "Oh, save!" (Both definitions from Strong's concordance). They then followed that cry by exactly quoting the first part of Psalm 118:26 "blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!". Then they grabbed palm branches, and "with boughs in hand" joined in "the festal procession up to the horns of the alter" (because we know that Jesus went straight to the Temple when he entered Jerusalem that day, as described in Matthew 21, Mark 11, and Luke 19). So this Psalm, written however many centuries earlier, well described the day when Jesus entered Jerusalem on the back of a donkey. 

Not only that, but we'll be having another "Palm Sunday" in the future:
"After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: 'Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.'"

All predicted in this tiny little section of one Psalm. Isn't God incredible!? How can we express the work he has done? Here's a clue...


Verses 28-29: 
Let us give thanks to him! Let us exalt him! Let us bring to mind his goodness and love. Let us recount ways where he had been faithful. Let us dwell on his nature. Let us examine ourselves, find ourselves wanting, repent, and cry out to him for the freedom he offers. Then, let us rejoice in the grace and favor that he grants to us!



Father in heaven, your name is Holy. None can compare with you, and no one else deserves the glory that you have. You are the First, and you are the Last.
May your kingdom come. Fulfill your promises to your people once again. Bring us to your place of rest.
May your will be done on earth with the same diligence and humility as it is done in heaven.
Give us today exactly what we need, like you did for your people in the wilderness every day for 40 years. Feed our hearts and minds with your Word. Refresh us with your Spirit. Give us the sustenance and nourishment that comes from doing your will.
Forgive our sins. We know you see them, and we know you cannot excuse them. But we ask that you would choose to not hold them against us. And as you do for us, we pray that you would do the same for those who have sinned against us. Don't hold their sin against them. And teach us to do the same. For with the same measure we use, we know it will be measured to us.
We also pray that you would preserve us from the schemes of our Enemy. Lead us away from his temptations and lies. Bring your light and your voice to bear in our lives, and guide us true on the path of righteousness. Produce the life of your Son Jesus Christ in us as you change us from the inside out.
For to you belongs the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever and ever!
Amen

I hope you got at least a little bit of the encouragement in reading this that I got by putting it together! May God's faithfulness, goodness, and love follow you as you go about the rest of your day, and the rest of your week!
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