A Cry For Help

Psalms 22 is a cry for help.  If we ever find ourselves overwhelmed by life or adversity and enemies, this Psalm is a great comfort. David begins with a haunting cry, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” In the end David learns God had not forsaken him. He learns God understands and helps.

Following the cry, David soon turns to speak of God’s power (vs. 3-5). David speaks of how people viewed him and treated him (vs. 6-8).  He shows us how helpless he is (vs. 9-11).  He is surrounded by enemies and he feels helpless and void of strength (vs. 11-18). He cries to God for help (vs. 19-21). 

What is David to do? What will God do?  David learns God has not forsaken him (vs. 21). He then breaks out in praise. “God has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; nor has He hidden His face from him; but when he cried to God, He heard” (vs. 23-24). The whole assembly rejoices (vs. 22). All Israel rejoices (vs. 23-24). The entire world rejoices (vs. 25-31). 

This Psalm is a great comfort. We learn God does not forsake us even in our darkest moments. David shows us that even though, from our perspective, it seems like God has left us all alone, He is listening to us. So, what should our attitude be toward God? We praise Him (vs. 26). We seek Him (vs. 26). We remember Him and turn to Him (vs. 27). We worship Him (vs. 27). We bow before Him (vs. 29). We serve Him (vs. 30).

This Psalm is also Messianic. Jesus utters the words of David on the cross about being forsaken. Did God forsake Him? Did God forsake David? David finds out God has not. When has God ever forsaken any righteous person? The idea that God forsook Jesus because He looked on Him as a sinner is incorrect.  Our sins were not imputed to Him. Jesus was our sacrifice not our substitute. Further, Jesus says, “Indeed the hour is coming, yes, and has now come, that you will be scattered, each to his own, and will leave Me alone. And yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me” (John 16:32). Like David, Jesus uses this as a hyperbole.  To all that were there that day, it looked like God had forsaken Him. It looked like Satan had delivered the death blow to God’s Son. But He was not forsaken. He was despised by men, forsaken by His own, but not His Father. His Father was ever with Him. 

For us this should be tremendously comforting. In our deepest, darkest moments God has not forsaken us. He is ever with us. He will not leave us alone. 

Action items:

1. It is okay to cry for help. We need God.
2. In our moments of despair, do not despair because God has left us. He said He would never leave us nor forsake us.
3. Everyone else may walk away from us but God won’t. Even when we walk away from Him, His hands are out-stretched to us. 

God Speaks

Psalms 19 tells us God is real. God speaks through His world book and His word book.  We often think God only revealed Himself through His word. In Psalm 19 we see God has two books: His world book and His word book. 

In His world book, we see God through His creation. “The heavens declare” the mind and power of God. When we look up into the heavens, we see the intelligence of God. We see how marvelous and wonderful this world is made. We also see that His creation took great power. Man cannot duplicate what God has done. He is not smart enough and he is not powerful enough. Consistently, this world operates, “day unto day.” Creation “utters speech.”  While that speech is silent, it is also deafening. It shouts, “There is a God!” And, it does not matter what part of the world we may be in, the speech is still the same.

By His world book we can know there is a God. But it is by His word book we come to know who He is and how we can serve and please Him. Notice, it is in His word book we learn the law of the Lord is perfect. We learn His testimony is sure. We learn His statues are right. We learn His commandments are pure. We learn the fear of the Lord is clean and His judgments are true and righteous.

In His word book we see how valuable His word is.  It is more to be desired than gold and it is sweeter than honey. Why? Because it warns and directs. It warns us of danger and directs us to the right path.

The world book will show there is a God. The word book will tell us how we can be with Him.

Action items:

1. Look at God’s world book and listen. But we must want to hear.
2. Look into God’s word book and listen. But we must want to hear.
3. “He that has ears to hear” let him hear both God’s world book and His word book.

Psalm 98

Psalm 98 is a beautiful song of praise. It is very similar to Psalm 96. Psalm 98 points our attention to our victorious God. In v. 1-3 He is our deliverer. In v. 4-6 He is our King. In v. 7-9 He is our righteous judge. 

Some of the language found in the first 3 verses are found echoed through the Exodus 

• V. 1 – right hand…holy arm – Exodus 6:6; Deuteronomy 4:34
• V. 2 – He has revealed His righteousness to the nations – Exodus 9:16; Romans 9:17
• V. 3 – He has remembered…His faithfulness to the house of Israel – Exodus 2:23-25

There are also some interesting parallels between the first 3 verses and Mary’s Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55). 

• V. 1 – Sing to the Lord a new song – Luke 1:46
• V. 1 – He has done wonderful things – Luke 1:49
• V. 2 – His right hand and holy arm have gained the victory – Luke 1:51
• V. 2 – He has revealed His righteousness in the sight of the nations – Luke 1:50
• V. 3 – He has remembered His lovingkindness and His faithfulness to the house of Israel – Luke 1:54-55

There is much mentioned to praise God for through this Psalm, but one attribute worth thinking on today is that our God is a God who does not forget (v. 3). That’s hard to imagine, because we forget – a lot! We forget about appointments, commitments, where we put things. Joseph was forgotten in prison. There was a time the Apostles forgot to take along bread to eat (Matt. 16:5). God’s people forgot their Creator and His laws. 

But God doesn’t forget. He doesn’t forget His promises He made to us. He doesn’t forget to keep His word. He doesn’t forget about us or neglect us. Not even the sparrows are forgotten in His eyes (Luke 12:6). 

The Hebrew writer said, “For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister” (Heb. 6:10). We can trust as the Psalmist did, as Mary did, that the Lord remembers us. 

High King of Heaven, with joy I lift up Your name. You have done great things for Your people, delivering them from their enemies – and You deliver Your people today from sin. I join my voice with the rivers and the mountains – Your Creation lauds and admires You. I am in awe that You remember me, You remember the promises You’ve given, You remember to provide daily care and direction. That I am in Your mind even today thrills my soul. It is my prayer, o God, that my life can further reveal to the world how righteous and good You are. You are my thoughts, my song, my joy. 

Man’s Significance

Psalms 8 speaks of our importance. It is easy to get swept up in the process of life. It is easy to think we no longer matter. It is easy to feel, because of age or illness, life passes us by. It is easy to feel passed over as useless. Psalms 8 tells us the high value God places upon everyone, young or old. 

The question, “What is man?”  can only be understood by his relationship with God. The Psalm first tells us of the bigness of God (vs. 1-2).  When we look up in the sky and see the stars, we feel so small. Am I significant at all? Yet, even a nursing baby shows God’s majesty. Even God’s enemies are silenced when we consider His wonders.  The stars and babies both remind us that God loves His creation. 

So, what is man? Is man significant or not?   Man is made a little lower than the angels. While that says, in comparison to God man is little, it also says that in creation man is significant. “Made a little lower than the angels” is not a statement of how low man is but how high he is. He is created by God, not a by-product of evolution and chance. He is made in the image of God, created for God’s glory, created to have dominion over creation. 

Sadly, man lost his exalted privilege. Instead of being a victor and having dominion over creation, he became a victim of creation. Sin robbed him of his full potential. Yet, God still cares. 

This Psalm is also used of Jesus. Jesus came to provide a remedy for man. In Christ, we can become what we lost. We were made by God to be Kings. 

Psalms 8 tells us we have significance. We have great value. We were created high. Even though we lost that exalted position it can be restored through Christ. God’s dream is still available for man.

Action items:

1. Look up at the stars and marvel at God’s mighty power. Just look and see.
2. Stop thinking of yourself as meaningless and insignificant. God made you! The way we see ourselves is the way we will see others.

I Love Your Word!

On Tuesdays we are going to be looking at one of the themes from the longest Psalm, Psalm 119. This psalm tends to scare readers off because of its length and its depth, but do not be discouraged. Follow along and we will discover some of its secrets together!

The first theme is love of Law. Psalm 119 is basically a love poem to the law (vv. 47, 48, 97, 113, 119, 127, 159, 163, 167 to name a few). This theme might sound strange at first, but the psalmist finds the law so outrageously loveable because it belongs to God. Since the law is distinctly God’s law, and comes right from his mouth, it is better than anything else, including heaps of treasure (v. 72, 127) and delicious honey (v. 103).

The notion of “law,” however, goes much further than just the Ten Commandments. “The law” is an expansive idea for the writer of Psalm 119. It is nearly impossible to read even a single verse of this psalm without bumping into it. That’s because the idea of “the law” is described by lots of different words in Psalm 119, including “commandments,” “precepts,” “ways,” “testimonies,” “ordinances,” “judgments,” “statutes,” and—most popular of them all—“words.” Only seven verses in this psalm do not mention this “law” idea in some way.

The psalmist is writing about his incredible love for anything God says. Whether actual commandments, or blessings, or prophecies, or decisions, or stories—whatever God says to his people, it’s utterly loveable. Every scrap of what God reveals in speech is priceless, including his rules. And words beget words, as God’s communication throws the psalmist into extended poetic rhapsody. As it should for us! These are the Words of the creator of all existence and He recorded this for you and I to read so that we may be able to come to an understanding of who He is and what He expects for His people.