Studies in the Psalms - Psalm 106

Psalm 106 begins as everything we do should; with praise and thanksgiving for our Lord.

Psalm 106:1
Praise the LORD! Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!

God deserves every bit of our energy to be spent on worshipping Him. True worship should express itself beyond words of thanksgiving by leading us to a life of obedience.

Psalm 106:2-3
Who can utter the mighty deeds of the LORD, or declare all his praise?  Blessed are they who observe justice, who do righteousness at all times!

It’s easy to read the Old Testament and be critical of the Jews. Chosen by God to be His people, we see in their history, this crazy pattern of following God, then falling into idolatry and sin. Clearly the writers of their history were honest in the picture of their own unfaithfulness. But the point of this historical narrative is not heir unfaithfulness; the point is God’s faithfulness to His people.

Psalm 106:6-8
Both we and our fathers have sinned; we have committed iniquity; we have done wickedness.  Our fathers, when they were in Egypt, did not consider your wondrous works; they did not remember the abundance of your steadfast love, but rebelled by the sea, at the Red Sea.  Yet he saved them for his name’s sake, that he might make known his mighty power.

Take careful note here of why God saved them. “He saved them for his name’s sake.” And why? “That he might make known his mighty power.” It’s about Him; not us.

Read through Psalm 106 and you find a repeated history. They remember God and are blessed and saved. They forget God and fall into discipline that leads them, again and again, to cry out to Him. Why does God put up with them?

Psalm 106:45
For their sake he remembered his covenant, and relented according to the abundance of his steadfast love.

He answers this prayer:

Psalm 106:47
Save us, O LORD our God, and gather us from among the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy name and glory in your praise.

The truth people, is that we are also chosen by God to be His people. We were created according to scripture, to do His work.

Ephesians 2:10
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Yet, if we look honestly at our hearts, we will see that like Israel, we fall in and out of sinful ways. The Bible paints a picture of mankind as fallen and sinful. According to Romans 3:23 we all sin, we all fall short of His glory. Jeremiah 17:9 is direct when it says, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?”

This very day, wherever you are, it is time to look hard at your own heart. It is time to get on our knees in confession and repentance and cry out to God as the psalmist does here.

Psalm 106:47-48
Save us, O LORD our God, and gather us from among the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy name and glory in your praise.  Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting! And let all the people say, “Amen!” Praise the LORD!

God answers this prayer. Not because we deserve it. He answers it for His name’s sake. He answers it to show the world His mighty power. At the end of it all God’s power will do one of two things. It will save you from you own damning sin or it will condemn you for all eternity.

Today is the day of salvation. Let all the people say “Amen” and praise the Lord.

Studies in the Psalms - Psalm 38

Psalm 37 is the third of the penitential psalms, which are psalms in which the author express sorrow and shame over his sin. All of us sin and fall short of the glory of God and there must be times in our lives when we go to God in prayers of penitence. The good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is that God has imputed the guilt of our sin upon Him, but our part in this demands repentance and confession. Amazingly there are times in our lives that we think we are hiding our sin from God, but we are not. God knows our very thoughts, even before we think them. In this psalm, we find David to be reaping the consequences of his sin. He has realized that it is this sin that has brought him into severe discipline at the hand of the Lord and in this psalm, we see three responses people have to the Lord’s discipline, as seen in the consequences of David’s sin.

The first response is to focus upon yourself, which simply allows us to experience the pain that comes because of our sin.

Psalm 38:1-3

O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger, nor discipline me in your wrath!  For your arrows have sunk into me, and your hand has come down on me.  There is no soundness in my flesh because of your indignation; there is no health in my bones because of my sin.

David is sick. He cries out to God. But he begins by blaming God, suggesting it is simply God’s anger and indignation that has brought this upon him. But then he remembers that it is his sin that is at the root. Far too many Christians fail to consider the possibility that it is their sin that is the reason God is allowing sickness to inflict their body. God is so patient with us, yet we should never be presumptuous with it and think we can stay in our sinful state. Listen to the rest of David’s description.

Psalm 38:4-8
For my iniquities have gone over my head; like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me. My wounds stink and fester because of my foolishness,  I am utterly bowed down and prostrate; all the day I go about mourning.  For my sides are filled with burning, and there is no soundness in my flesh.  I am feeble and crushed; I groan because of the tumult of my heart.

David knew it was his sin that needed to be dealt with and he started to look to God for the answer. But then he digressed and in that we see the second response we often have to the discipline of the Lord. He starts to focus on other people and begin to feel isolated.

Psalm 38:9-14
O Lord, all my longing is before you; my sighing is not hidden from you.  My heart throbs; my strength fails me, and the light of my eyes—it also has gone from me.  My friends and companions stand aloof from my plague, and my nearest kin stand far off.  Those who seek my life lay their snares; those who seek my hurt speak of ruin and meditate treachery all day long.  But I am like a deaf man; I do not hear, like a mute man who does not open his mouth.  I have become like a man who does not hear, and in whose mouth are no rebukes.

Sometimes God moves in those around us to allow us some time to suffer alone. This is the place we usually hit rock bottom and then realize it is God who we need. Then we can finally move into the third response, which is put our focus on Jesus. Then we can receive the forgiveness and restoration that we so badly crave.

Psalm 38:15-22
But for you, O LORD, do I wait; it is you, O Lord my God, who will answer.  For I said, “Only let them not rejoice over me, who boast against me when my foot slips!”  For I am ready to fall, and my pain is ever before me.  I confess my iniquity; I am sorry for my sin. But my foes are vigorous, they are mighty, and many are those who hate me wrongfully. Those who render me evil for good accuse me because I follow after good.  Do not forsake me, O LORD! O my God, be not far from me!  Make haste to help me, O Lord, my salvation!

Salvation is in the Lord. Once David wholeheartedly confessed his sin and turned back in repentance, he knew there was forgiveness. So, he waited confidently in the Lord, knowing even his vigorous and mighty enemies could not stand against God.

Hebrews 12 is clear that God disciplines His own. If we are truly His, our sin will bring discipline. How will we respond? Not all sickness and sorrow is a direct response of our own sin, though in general sin has brought death and sickness to the world since the fall of Adam. But when we find ourselves where David was, it is a good idea to ask the Holy Spirit to awaken us to any possible unconfessed sin. God loves us so much He sent His own Son to die for our sins. There is no condemnation in Christ Jesus. Keep your eyes on Him. Confess and repent. It’s that simple.

Studies in the Psalms - Psalm 32

Psalm 32 is called a “Maskil of David.” A Maskil is something that gives instruction, teaches something. One might say that the entire Bible is a Maskil, for in it is the secret of how to live as a child of God. The topic of instruction in this psalm is sin. What can we learn from David in this psalm?

Psalm 32:1-2

Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.  Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.

First of we see that the one who is blessed in this life, is the one who has found forgiveness for his sins. Christians and non-Christians alike, need to recognize the truth of their own sinfulness. And then to recognize that God can and does bring discipline into our lives to grow us in Christ.

Psalm 32:3-4
For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.  For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. Selah

Preachers have stopped preaching this truth in fear of offending people. I believe their hearts are leading them to think that if they offend people then they won’t respond to the preaching of the Gospel. But the Bible does not teach that. It teaches the opposite. We have far too many “saved” people who have no idea what they are saved from.

David suffered because of his own sin by thinking he could cover it up. But even his physical body was worn down until he finally came clean in confession.

Psalm 32:5
I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,” and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah

Not only do we see in this psalm the relief of confession and forgiveness, we also see that being in Christ brings even more.

Psalm 32:7
You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with shouts of deliverance. Selah

Jesus becomes our hiding place from our enemies. He delivers us from our sins.

Psalm 32:8-9
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you.  Be not like a horse or a mule, without understanding, which must be curbed with bit and bridle, or it will not stay near you.

Through His Holy Spirit, God teaches us and counsels us. We no longer need the psychology of man; the Holy Spirit becomes our counselor.

David reminds us that we need to seek Jesus now. There will come a day when it is too late.

Psalm 32:6
Therefore let everyone who is godly offer prayer to you at a time when you may be found; surely in the rush of great waters, they shall not reach him.

The final lesson of this psalm is simple. Trusting in Christ brings joy.

Psalm 32:10-11
Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the LORD.  Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, O righteous, and shout for joy, all you upright in heart!

Pray for the Holy Spirit to lead you to examine all your ways. He will lead you away from all sin. He will not only impute the righteousness of Christ upon you, which seals your place in eternity, He will also guide you into true holiness as you walk this earth.