Psalm 115 - Not an idol

This Psalm contrasts the nations and the nation that belongs to God. The Psalm starts off with the call that it is God's name that should be glorified. Nations, churches and individuals go wrong when we seek glory for ourselves. The psalmist appeals to the steadfast love and faithfulness of the Lord. These two aspects of His character should be bedrocks of our lives. Whatever our circumstances, we can rely on God's love and His faithfulness.

The nations mocked Israel, saying where is her God. They had idols of silver and gold and boasted that their idols would give them victory. But these idols were just hunks of metal, unable to speak, see or hear. Those who make them become like them. Today people still mock God. Atheists delight in the supposed purposelessness and meaninglessness of the universe. Just as in David's day, those who worship the idols of atheism will become like them, having no purpose or meaning.

Then the psalmist calls upon Israel to trust in the Lord. He is our help and shield. It can be tempting to turn to other things, to think that God will not help. We need to resist this temptation.

The Lord will bless those who fear Him, those who turn to Him and trust Him.

The whole universe belongs to God, and He will make us prosper, and we will praise His name.

Psalm 114 - The Lord and His People

This is a great psalm. It talks about what happened when Israel came out of Egypt. I would like to draw some parallels between this and what happens when we get saved. Israel was set free from slavery. It talks about "a people of strange language". Egypt was a place they did not belong. Likewise we were never meant to live as people separated from God. When we came to Jesus we came home.

Then Israel became God's dwelling place, the holy place where He lives. Paul talks of us being temples of the Holy Spirit. Israel also became His dominion. We become the place where God's rule exists and then extends from us to the world around us. This was the way things were meant to be with Israel. She was meant to be an example to the nations around her.

Then see what happened. The Jordan fled and turned back. This is a reference to Israel entering the promised land through the Jordan. The presence of the Lord opens up a way for us. Nature itself obeys the Lord. This was demonstrated most vividly when Jesus commanded the waves to be still.

Psalm113 - Praise the Lord

We are now into a season of psalms where praise is the dominant theme, rather than calling for help.

We are to praise the Name of the Lord, that means praising His character, His nature. And this is to happen at all times. It is never a mistake to praise the Lord.

The Lord is exalted above all natural power (above the heavens) and above all human power ( the nations).

God is far above all things and sees them exactly as they are. We have a blinkered and restricted view of what is going on. When we are in circumstances that frighten or intimidate us we need to remind ourselves that we do not see everything, but our God sees all things, including how He is going to rescue us.

Our God is a God who transforms peoples lives, He lift us up to places which could not reach, and gives joy we could never know. Praise the Lord.

Psalm 112 - True Prosperity

This psalm describes the character and the benefits of the man or woman of God.

The man who fears the Lord is a blessed man,  and this blessedness shows itself in all sorts of practical ways.

If you are a regular reader of this blog you will know that I am critical of some aspects of so-called prosperity teaching. However, I do believe in Biblical prosperity. This psalm makes it clear that God is interested in our material well being, and there is nothing wrong with being financially blessed. We must never make money our goal , 1 Timothy 6:9 contains a serious warning on this. The condition of our heart is what counts

"Even in darkness ...". We are not ruled by the circumstances, we can triumph at all times. So what do we do when times are tough? We react with grace, compassion and righteousness. We act generously  and justly. Then we will be truly secure. Note that it does not say how our victory will come. We live by faith. Part of living by faith is doing God's will not knowing how things will work out, only that they will work out.

A generous heart is the key and the sign of true prosperity.

Psalm 111 - Praise the Lord

The psalmist gives thanks to the Lord with his whole heart. We are to love the Lord with all that we have.

Why are we to do this? It is because His works are great, so we should study them. Science should be a noble enterprise, but it only remains so if fear of the lord is our foundation.

When we look at the world we see  a world full of splendour and majesty, every scientist would admit that.

There are also the works of the Lord in our lives, we need to remember these, and ponder on them as well. We will see His graciousness and mercy. He is a God who provides for us as well. He has made a covenant with His people and He is faithful to that covenant.

His works are faithful. He does not lead us down a path only to abandon us. His commands and ways are trustworthy, we can follow them with confidence. We too are to reflect His nature by being faithful and upright too.

He has sent redemption to His people.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, Proverbs says the same thing.It gives us good understanding.

Psalm 110 - Messiah

This does not pose the moral problems of the previous psalm. Nonetheless it is a very complex psalm.

It was always recognised as a messianic psalm by the Jews and was quoted by Jesus himself (Matt 22:41-46). Jesus pointed out that it showed that the concept of the messiah as just a human descendant of David was limited. The messiah would be equal with God, hence the use of the term "the Lord said to my Lord".

This is a psalm of victory. His enemies will be made a footstool and He will reign in the midst of his enemies. More than that, His people will be willing on the day of battle.

There is more messianic stuff with the reference to the enigmatic priest Melchizedek. The messiah would be a priest and a warrior.

We then do get a reference to load of corpses, so maybe it does have similar problems to the previous psalm! There will be complete victory over the enemy.

Psalm 109 - Evil

This a difficult Psalm as it offends our Christian sensibilities.

David is surrounded by enemies who have repaid good with evil. So far so good, but then David calls down all sorts of judgement upon them and their families. In fact there seems to be a particular individual in mind.

So what are we to make of it? Well first, part of the psalm is quoted in Acts in relation to replacing Judas, so we cannot just ignore it as an aberration. Judas gives us one clue, part of the purpose is to describe the evil that can exist in the heart of a man.

Then there is the reality and awfulness of evil. Terrible evil exists in the world, but in the face of evil we can call upon the name of the Lord.