Studies in the Psalms - Psalm 67

Many people think the mission and the purpose of the Church, and of us as Christians, is to lead people to salvation. Certainly, that is one of our commandments. But the ultimate purpose of man and the church is to glorify God. Mission work, just like any true work of the Church, has at its end goal, the glorification of God. Psalm 67 reminds of us this.

Psalm 67:1-2

 May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us, Selah  that your way may be known on earth, your saving power among all nations.

We pray for God’s blessing to be upon us. Stop and ask yourself why? Is it simply so that you can then go out into the world and offer praise and worship? Are you light and salt to the lost world? We must consider our motives in prayer. It is a primary reason, according to scripture, our prayers go unanswered.

James 4:3
You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures.

We should pray for the things that will show in us, the Glory of God.

The reason for our salvation is not simply that we get to go to heaven.

Psalm 67:3-6
Let the peoples praise You, O God; Let all the peoples praise You.  Let the nations be glad and sing for joy; For You will judge the peoples with uprightness And guide the nations on the earth. Selah.  Let the peoples praise You, O God; Let all the peoples praise You.  The earth has yielded its produce; God, our God, blesses us.

The reason for our salvation is so that the world would see God’s glory in and through us.

Psalm 67:7
God blesses us, That all the ends of the earth may fear Him.

The world does not fear God. Well, it thinks it doesn’t. Yet the headlines in the news this very day are filled with things men fear. Hurricanes, world leaders with their fingers on the buttons of thermo-nuclear weapons, and diseases that cripple and kill, strike fear in the hearts of man. Guess what? According to scripture, all the things we fear are under the sovereign control of God.

Bless God. Bless Him that the ends of the earth will fear Him, before it’s too late.

Studies in the Psalms - Psalm 46

How to Have Peace Living Under the Threat of Destruction

As one who grew up in the sixties, I saw the results of living in a world under threat of nuclear war. I can remember the countless drills at school, when we practiced putting our heads in our laps in hopes that we might survive the blast if it occurred. For me the recent North Korean threats have disturbed me. I rejoiced when the Cold War ended and it seems as if we have moved back into a place of danger. This morning’s psalm is a calming salve to those fears.

Psalm 46:1-3

God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble.  Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change And though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea; Though its waters roar and foam, Though the mountains quake at its swelling pride. Selah.

The world we live in is changing. It has already changed by leaps and bounds since my childhood. But we need not fear. Our God is a refuge and a strong one. Nothing can come up against Him.

Psalm 46:4-7
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, The holy dwelling places of the Most High.  God is in the midst of her, she will not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns.  The nations made an uproar, the kingdoms tottered; He raised His voice, the earth melted.  The LORD of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our stronghold. Selah.

The Bible tells us that those who are in authority over the nations were put there by God, Himself. And God, who dwells in the heavenly realm, is above the nations. God created this world by merely speaking it into existence. He can melt this earth in the exact same way. Kim Jong-un and Donald Trump can spew out threats all day long, but God is still sovereign over them. The God of Jacob is our stronghold.

What do we do in the midst of this changing world? How do we not live in anxious fear of nuclear war?

Psalm 46:8-9
Come, behold the works of the LORD, how he has brought desolations on the earth.  He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariots with fire.

God is still in control.

What do we do?

Psalm 46:10
“Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”

Be still. Know that He is God. Kim Jong-un will one day bend his knee to Jesus. Until then, we are commanded to pray for him. (Matthew 5:44) Donald Trump is in serious need of Godly counsel. We are commanded to pray for him. (1 Timothy 2:1-3) We are commanded to exalt God and God alone is worthy of both praise and of fear.

Pray for the world’s leaders. Then be still and know that He is God. Rest in Him. He is a safe refuge. He is a mighty fortress.

Psalm 46:11
The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah

Amen.