Psalm 30 - I will exalt you, Lord

Psalm 30

The preamble tells us that this psalm was for the dedication of the temple.

David exalts the Lord because He lifted him out of the depths and did not let his enemies gloat over him. We praise the Lord for a reason. David called on the Lord for help and the Lord healed him.\he saved his life. David then calls on the people to praise the Lord. The favour of the Lord outweighs the anger of the Lord.

\david’s well being and security depends upon the Lord. With the Lord we are strong and secure, without Him we are weak and vulnerable.

The Lord turned his wailing into dancing, God can transform our lives.

Psalm 29 - Ascribe to the Lord glory and strength

Psalm 29

Another of what seem to me to be David’s reflective psalms The start of the psalm is addressed to “heavenly beings”. Heavenly beings can include angels ans demons. Whatever the case they are to ascribe glory and strength to the Lord. And we should do the same. We can feel overwhelmed or threatened, but the Lord has all glory and strength, he is able.

Nor is the Lord silent, His voice is over the waters, His voice reaches all parts of the world. And His voice is powerful. The cedars of Lebanon were a strong wood, but the voice of the Lord could break them. Sirion is Mount Hermon. The Lord is might in power, and He gives strength to His people and blesses them with peace. We should never forget this, which Israel often did.

Psalm 28 - I call upon the Lord

Psalm 28

It seems to me that in some of the psalms, such as this one, David is reflecting on how life with God works. We should maybe do the same some times. The start is that David call upon the Lord, for the Lord is his rock. The Lord is our only sure foundation. If God does not help him he is done for, we are utterly dependent upon him. David calls on the Lord for mercy, he does not want to be treated along with the wicked.The wicked are described as those who do evil, and speak deceitfully. David wants the wicked to be judged by the Lord, to receive what they deserve. These people have no regard for the Lord, the Lord is against such people. Part of the truth of the Bible is that the Lord will bring justice. Righteousness is part of His nature. He has heard David’s cry for mercy. Remember that Jesus commended the tax collector who asked God to have mercy upon him. (Luke 18:9-13). We are dependent upon the Lord’s mercy, this is a surer foundation than relying on our righteousness. The psalm finishes with David calling on God to save His people. And to be their shepher

Psalm 27 - The Lord is the stronghold of my life!

Psalm 27

In this psalm David reflects on how God influences his life. The Lord is his light and his salvation. He shows him the way to live, and He rescues him from his foes. He is the stronghold of his life, so David has no need to be afraid of anyone or anything. We can say the same. God is our source of strength and security. We may encounter difficult times, but nothing can completely overwhelm us, for the Lord is our stronghold.

Enemies did come against David, seeking to devour him. Even so David would not fear, for it was his enemy who would stumble and fall.

The one thing that David sought was to dwell in the house of the Lord forever, and to gaze on the beauty of the Lord. The Lord was his strength and his delight. God said to Abraham “I am your shield, your very great reward” (Gen 15:1). The Lord will help us in our day of trouble. As with the parable of building on the rock, the promise is not that trouble will never come, but when it does it will not defeat us, for the Lord will keep us safe in His dwelling. More than that the Lord will exalt our head above the enemies who oppose us. We will sacrifice with shouts of joy.

David’s heart called upon him to seek the face of the Lord.

David was confident that he would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

Psalm 26 - Vindicate me Lord !

Psalm 26

In this psalm David seems to rely on his uprightness. This presents something of a problem, for we know that David was far from perfect, and that we certainly are far from perfect. So how are we to read this psalm? Part of the answer is that it is all true of Jesus, and He is our righteousness, and while we are always dependent upon God’s grace and mercy, it is better to live rightly than not.

Jesus could honestly say that He has led a blameless life. We should trust in the Lord without faltering, no matter how difficult it gets. In v2 he asks the Lord to examine his heart and mind. So what are the signs of a blameless heart and mind? It is one that is always mindful of God’s unfailing love and we rely on His faithfulness. THings can happen that make us doubt His love, but He never stops loving us.

Then we do not sit with the deceitful and the hypocrites, we are careful of the company  that we keep. We proclaim the faithfulness of the lord and tell of His wonderful deeds, we feed the spirit rather than the flesh.

On the contrary we love to be with those who love the Lord. If keep our trust in the Lord we stand on level ground and will praise the Lord.

Psalm 25 - Teach me your ways, O Lord

Psalm 25

David seems to be in trouble again, but explains his approach to life. The most fundamental point is that he puts his trust in the Lord. He then calls on the Lord to not let him be put to shame, nor to let his enemies triumph over him. We can fear being made to look foolish and David declares that this will not happen to those whose hope is in the Lord. On the contrary it is those who are treacherous who will be put to shame.

David then asks the Lord to teach him His ways. Sometimes the solution is God doing something, God intervening, at others it is God teaching us how to handle the situation. He calls on God to remember His great mercy, and not to remember his sins. I am sure that we can all identify with that.

The Lord is good and upright, and it is in hHis nature to instruct sinners in His ways. He guides the humble. So when we ask God to teach us we are not asking God for something that He is reluctant to give, but something that it is in His nature to do. David also admits that his iniquity is great.

Fearing the Lord puts us in prime position to receive instruction from the Lord. God likes those who fear Him and confides in them. So David’s eyes are ever on the Lord, knowing that it is the Lord who will set him free.

In v16-19 David relates how his troubles are affecting him. Just as David looks for deliverance for himself, he also wants salvation for Israel.

Psalm 24 - He is the King of Glory

Psalm 24

This is a psalm of praise. The whole earth belongs to the Lord for He is the one who created everything. We do well to remember this when we see pretensions setting themselves up against the knowledge of God (2 Cor 10:4,5).

So who can ascend the mountain of the Lord, only the one who has clean hands and a pure heart. So the atheists etc have no chance. Those who trust in the Lord will receive blessing from the Lord, and vindication from God our saviour. He is God and He is our saviour.

David calls upon Israel to let the Lord come in. We should all do this, we may face many problems, but the Lord is strong and mighty in battle, He is the king of Glory.