Psalm 49

1 Hear this, all ye people; give ear, all ye inhabitants of the world:

2Both low and high, rich and poor, together.

3 My mouth shall speak of wisdom; and the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding.

4 I will incline mine ear to a parable: I will open my dark saying upon the harp.

5 Wherefore should I fear in the days of evil, when the iniquity of my heels shall compass me about?

6 They that trust in their wealth and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches.

7 None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him:

8 (For the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceases forever:)

9 That he should still live forever, and not see corruption.

10 For he sees that wise men die, likewise the fool and the brutish person perish, and leave their wealth to others.

11 Their inward thought is that their houses shall continue forever, and their dwelling places to all generations; they call their lands after their own names.

12 Nevertheless man being in honor abides not: he is like the beasts that perish.

13 This their way is their folly: yet their posterity approves their sayings. Selah.

14 Like sheep they are laid in the grave; death shall feed on them; and the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning; and their beauty shall consume in the grave from their dwelling.

15 But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave: for he shall receive me. Selah.

16 Be not thou afraid when one is made rich, when the glory of his house is increased.

17 For when he dies, he shall carry nothing away: his glory shall not descend after him.

18 Though while he lived, he blessed his soul: and men will praise thee, when thou do well to thyself.

19 He shall go to the generation of his fathers; they shall never see light.

20 Man that is in honor, and understands not, is like the beasts that perish. (KJV)

As you look at these verses, try to picture yourself listening to Christ preaching his messages from the hills of Galilee. The message that Christ is preaching is to answer the statement: No man can redeem the life of another or give to God a ransom for him the ransom for a life is costly; no payment is ever enough that he should live on forever and not see decay.  Let’s face it we cannot redeem our life. As we read this psalm, we realize that all can see that wise men die; the foolish and the senseless alike perish and leave their wealth to others. There is no way that man, despite his riches, does not endure; he is like the beasts that perish. This is the fate of those who trust in themselves, and of their followers, who approve their sayings.

However, there is a way, and it is also in his message: But God will redeem my life from the grave; he will surely take me to himself.

This psalm continues with a warning for us: “Do not be overawed when a man grows rich, when the splendor of his house increases; for he will take nothing with him when he dies, his splendor will not descend with him. Though while he lived, he counted himself blessed and men praise you when you prosper, he will join the generation of his fathers, who will never see the light of life. A man who has riches without understanding is like the beasts that perish.”  That understanding of verse twenty of this psalm can be found in John 3:16 “For God so loved the world He gave His only begotten son that whosoever believe in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life,”  and I John 5:12” He that hath the son hath life; he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.”

One event that a person will experience as they grow older is the end of a life of a loved one or someone who is close to them. Yes, I am writing about a funeral. I experienced my first funeral (my father’s) when I was only fifteen. Then four months later, I attended the funeral of my brother. So, at the age fifteen when most young adolescence were enjoying the experience of youth, I had already lost a father and a brother and started the process of asking God the hard questions of life. Today as I was attending the funeral of a friend’s father, I realized that understanding one’s life is like putting together a puzzle. As I study Psalms 139:16, “All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.” I realize that God has the top of the puzzle box with the picture. We are the ones that have to put together the pieces of the puzzle of life.

Sometimes our personal beliefs come into conflict with the world and even those who are close to us.  This psalm has the greatest promise for all of mankind.  The promise of redeeming us from the grave.  Jesus spoke this promise to Nicodemus in their discourse that is recorded in John 3:1-21.  Jesus used the example of Moses lifting up the serpent in the wilderness as the way God was going provided as the way to redeem our life.   Jesus explained that his only purpose of being send by God to this earth was to save man from the curse of sin.  We either believe in Christ, or we do not and reject him.  Believing in Jesus will change the way we walk in this world.  Knowing that there is so much more after we die and leave this world that the things of this life does not have as much attraction to us as it did in the past.  I can now live a life that does not fear death. 

Psalm 48

1 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of his holiness.

2 Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King.

3 God is known in her palaces for a refuge.

4 For, lo, the kings were assembled, they passed by together.

5 They saw it, and so they marveled; they were troubled, and hasted away.

6 Fear took hold upon them there, and pain, as of a woman in travail.

7 Thou break the ships of Tarshish with an east wind.

8 As we have heard, so have we seen in the city of the Lord of hosts, in the city of our God: God will establish it forever. Selah.

9 We have thought of thy loving-kindness, O God, in the midst of thy temple.

10 According to thy name, O God, so is thy praise unto the ends of the earth: thy right hand is full of righteousness.

11 Let mount Zion rejoice, let the daughters of Judah be glad, because of thy judgments.

12 Walk about Zion and go round about her: tell the towers thereof.

13 Mark ye well her bulwarks, consider her palaces; that ye may tell it to the generation following.

14 For this God is our God for ever and ever: he will be our guide even unto death. (KJV)

Reading this psalm, I am reminded that there are forces that are making advance against our God.  It happened in heaven as well as it is now taking place on earth. As I consider the many voices of society today, I can understand why those who have chosen to be close to God and seek to live a blameless life are quiet. These are the ones that I believe have the same lifestyles as the seven thousand found in I King 19:18 ” Yet I have left me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him.” These are the ones today who have abandoned the desires to chase after the Jones or seek the fame and riches that this world seeks to give. They are the ones that know God and enjoy the simple pleasures of life that he bestows upon them. They are the ones that like Abraham know that they are just on a journey and that their real treasures are in heaven, Mt Zion, the city of God. They meditate on God’s unfailing love and trust in his judgments. They do not have to prove to the world that God is on their side, because they have the peace of God within their heart that assures them that the Lord Almighty is their God.

Verse fourteen “For this God is our God for ever and ever: he will be our guide even unto death.” Is a verse that we must apply to our everyday life.  As we travel on this journey through our time on this earth, we will face the ups and downs that come along the path we travel.  During the high points and victories, we usually do not have a problem praising the Lord; but sometimes when our paths get dark and there seems no light or assistance from above, we become discourage and look for help from other sources than the Lord.  It is in the darkness of these moments when we need to reach in the riches of God’s Word (Bible) for light.  It is the simple songs that we learn as a child that are the deepest in meaning. 

Examples:

The BIBLE yes that the book for me.

It stands for God.

Yes, the Word of God.

The BIBLE.

My God is so big, so great and so powerful.

There nothing my God cannot do.

These two songs I use to teach to the two-year-old children their Sunday School class.  These songs like this psalm are words that we need to hide in our heart and pull them out as lights when darkness starts to crept along our pathway.   

Psalm 47

1 O clap your hands, all ye people: shout unto God with the voice of triumph.

2 For the Lord most high is terrible; he is a great King over all the earth.

3 He shall subdue the people under us, and the nations under our feet.

4 He shall choose our inheritance for us, the excellency of Jacob whom he loved. Selah.

5 God is gone up with a shout, the Lord with the sound of a trumpet.

6 Sing praises to God, sing praises: sing praises unto our King, sing praises.

7 For God is the King of all the earth: sing ye praises with understanding.

8 God reigns over the heathen: God sits upon the throne of his holiness.

9 The princes of the people are gathered together, even the people of the God of Abraham: for the shields of the earth belong unto God: he is greatly exalted. (KJV)

In this psalm God is portrayed as the King over all the earth.  He is the one that will subdue both the people and the nations under his feet.  He is the one that choose Israel inheritance for them.  His throne is characterizing as a throne of holiness.  This is a psalm that points to the Jesus as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. 

Reading this psalm this morning, I stop and reflected about all the influences that have already occurred today in my life.  In the past on my daily commute to work every morning I would listen either to the radio or to my CDs on the scriptures. As I listen to radio, it seems that half of the time I am listening to advertising that makes claims on how to improve and make your life better and more productive. Yet, most of this claim leaves out one major compound and that is God. By reading the psalms daily, the reader will soon truly grasp how awesome the Lord really is in heaven and on earth. When I listen to these claims that promise to give me a great and better life, they leave out God.

The commercials usually have one purpose and that is to make the person or company offering them a profit. When hearing these claims, I have to reflect on the very fall of man in the Garden of Eden.  Adam took the fruit from his wife who had taken it from the serpent, who had convinced her that there was more to life than God had provided. He convinced Eve and she convinced Adam “that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise”. However, after they eat of the fruit, their eyes was opened and they saw their own nakedness.

I see the same with all the claims that the world offers us today. Even the claims of most Christian ministries seem to fall short of meeting the needs and desires of fallen man. Unless fallen man truly returns to a dependence on God, he will perish just like the beast of the field. As Psalm 49: 20 states “A man who has riches without understanding is like the beasts that perish”. However, when we truly get to a point in our life that we trust God and pursue a desire to live a blameless life in the light of his Word, then we will see that he will cloth us in His glory. How awesome would our lives be if our daily routines in this world would truly reflect our true dependence upon God to manage the affairs of our life?

Psalm 46

1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

2 Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea.

3 Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.

4 There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High.

5 God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early.

6 The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved: he uttered his voice, the earth melted.

7 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.

8 Come; behold the works of the Lord, what desolation he hath made in the earth.

9 He makes wars to cease unto the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and cuts the spear in sunder; he burns the chariot in the fire.

10 Be still and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen; I will be exalted in the earth.

11 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah (KJV)

Sometimes as we study God’s Word, we just look at the words and apply them to our life. This Psalm was a song created for the worship of God.  It was probably written during the time that Assyria was attacking Judah under the reign of King Hezekiah.  In II Kings 19:35 “And it came to pass that night that the angel of the Lord went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred four-score and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, they were all dead corpses.” might have set the stage for this psalm.  God is the subject of this song. The theme of this psalm starting with verse one and as it continues to the last verse it is God that takes care of us. God is our refuge and strength; then why do we fear? David’s theme in this Psalm is centered on the concept of faith. His faith was a total trust in God to intervene in every aspect of his life. He realized that nothing is too small or too large for the Lord.

Verse ten of this Psalm gives the believer the way of God to approach the troubles, which we face as we complete our journey upon the face of this earth. Be still and know that I am God is the advice that for several believers do not have the time available to practice. This is a way of God that will test our faith and the more we grow in this way the more we will see his hand in the smallest activities that we pursue. This goes against the wise old saying of “God helps those who help themselves”. The problem that most believers have with dealing with the everyday issues in life is that this wise old saying seems to have a greater impact on their life then verse ten does. Try waiting on God as a way of walking in his way.

Reading this Psalm, I reflect upon the last two chapters of the Bible. Revelation twenty-one starts with this verse ” And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth are passed away and the sea is no more. There is a time in the future where everything I have worked for will be destroyed, the works of both my hands and my mind. However, the one that overcomes can inherit the things of the new heaven and the new earth.  We need to stop (cease from fighting) striving for our earthly desires and behold the works of the Lord.   When the things of this earth slowly diminish as the focus of our journey in this world; then the light of the eternal treasures will grow even brighter in our life.

Psalm 45

1 My heart is inditing a good matter: I speak of the things which I have made touching the king: my tongue is the pen of a ready writer.

2 Thou art fairer than the children of men: grace is poured into thy lips: therefore, God hath blessed thee forever.

3 Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty, with thy glory and thy majesty.

4 And in thy majesty ride prosperously because of truth and meekness and righteousness; and thy right hand shall teach thee terrible things.

5 Thine arrows are sharp in the heart of the king’s enemies; whereby the people fill under thee.

6 Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: the scepter of thy kingdom is a right scepter.

7 Thou loves righteousness, and hates wickedness: therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.

8 All thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia, out of the ivory palaces, whereby they have made thee glad.

9 Kings’ daughters were among thy honorable women: upon thy right hand did stand the queen in gold of Ophir.

10 Hearken, O daughter, and consider, and incline thine ear; forget also thine own people, and thy father’s house.

11 So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty: for he is thy Lord; and worship thou him.

12 And the daughter of Tyre shall be there with a gift; even the rich among the people shall entreat thy favor.

13 The king’s daughter is all glorious within: her clothing is of wrought gold.

14 She shall be brought unto the king in raiment of needlework: the virgins her companions that follow her shall be brought unto thee.

15 With gladness and rejoicing shall they be brought: they shall enter into the king’s palace.

16 Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children, whom thou may make princes in all the earth.

17 I will make thy name to be remembered in all generations: therefore, shall the people praise thee forever and ever.  (KJV)

This psalm can only refer to one person and that is Christ. The writer of the book of Hebrews uses this verse in chapter one to introduce Christ, God’s son, as the one who has provided purification for sins and is now seated at the right hand of God in heaven. This process of our growth in understanding why God provide redemption through Christ for mankind is a mystery I cannot fully understand; however, it is psalms such as this psalm that makes it so real to me. Paul states it better in Philippians 3:8 as I count all things loss for the Excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus. The goal of this knowledge is to be found in him and to obtain the righteousness that is provided by our faith in him. The end result is that we will know Christ and that the new life given to us by the result of his resurrection and by our partaking in his suffering will make us more Christ like so that we will become sons of God. No wonder this psalm starts out with the phase “My heart is stirred by a noble theme as I recite my verses for the King”. When studying the Bible, I hope that Christ is the noble theme that you look for in your studies.

As I study this chapter I am reminded of the song “Tell me the Story of Jesus” that I learn many years ago.   I remember this song from working on a dairy farm during the early years of my youth.  As we were milking the cows the radio would be tuned in to a Christian broadcasting station and this story would be played on air a lot in the early 1960’s.  This is a song that all believers should learn and place within their heart.  This song was written by Frances Crosby

Tell Me The Story Of Jesus,
Write On My Heart Every Word!
Tell Me The Story Most Precious,
Sweetest That Ever Was Heard.

Tell How The Angels In Chorus
Sang, As They Welcomed His Birth,
‘Glory To God In The Highest,
Peace And Good Tidings To Earth.’

Fasting Alone In The Desert,
Tell Of The Days That He Passed;
How He Was Tried And Was Tempted,
Yet Was Triumphant At Last.

Tell Of The Years Of His Labors,
Tell Of The Sorrows He Bore;
He Was Despised And Afflicted,
Homeless, Rejected, And Poor.

Tell Of The Cross Where They Nailed Him,
Dying In Anguish And Pain;
Tell Of The Grave Where They Laid Him;
Tell How He Liveth Again.
Love, In That Story So Tender,
Clearer Than Ever I See;
Stay, Let Me Weep While You Whisper
Love Paid The Ransom For Me.

Refrain:
               Tell Me The Story Of Jesus,
          Write On My Heart Every Word,
          Tell Me The Story Most Precious,
          Sweetest That Ever Was Heard.

David also probably had many songs that he learned as a child telling the story of the provisions that the Lord had provided for the nation of Israel in the past.  We see many examples of these in the Psalms.  These are the values that we must pass down to our children and grandchildren.   

Psalm 44

1 We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what work thou didst in their days, in the times of old.

2 How thou didst drive out the heathen with thy hand and planted them; how thou didst afflict the people, and cast them out.

 arm save them: but thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favor unto them.

4 Thou art my King, O God: command deliverance for Jacob.

5 Through thee will we push down our enemies: through thy name will we tread them under that rise up against us.

6 For I will not trust in my bow, neither shall my sword save me.

7 But thou hast saved us from our enemies, and hast put them to shame that hated us.

8 In God we boast all the day long and praise thy name for ever. Selah.

9 But thou hast cast off and put us to shame; and goes not forth with our armies.

10 Thou makes us to turn back from the enemy: and they which hate us spoil for themselves.

11 Thou hast given us like sheep appointed for meat; and hast scattered us among the heathen.

12 Thou sells thy people for nought, and dost not increase thy wealth by their price.

13 Thou makes us a reproach to our neighbors, a scorn and a derision to them that are round about us.

14 Thou makes us a byword among the heathen, a shaking of the head among the people.

15 My confusion is continually before me, and the shame of my face hath covered me,

16 For the voice of him that reproaches and blasphemes, by reason of the enemy and avenger.

17 All this is come upon us; yet have we not forgotten thee, neither have we dealt falsely in thy covenant.

18 Our heart is not turned back, neither have our steps declined from thy way.

19 Though thou hast sore broken us in the place of dragons and covered us with the shadow of death.

20 If we have forgotten the name of our God, or stretched out our hands to a strange god;

21 Shall not God search this out? for he knows the secrets of the heart.

22 Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day long; we are counted as sheep for the slaughter.

23 Awake, why sleeps thou, O Lord? arise, cast us not off forever.

24 Wherefore hides thou thy face, and forgets our affliction and our oppression?

25 For our soul is bowed down to the dust: our belly cleaves unto the earth.

26 Arise for our help and redeem us for thy mercies’ sake.  (KJV)

Romans 11:25 “For I do not want you brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery, lest you be wise in your own estimation, that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fulness of the Gentiles has come in; and thus all Israel be saved; just as it is written, The Deliver will come from Zion, He will remove ungodliness from Jacob, and this is My covenant with them, when I take away their sins.”  In Romans chapter eleven Paul expounds on how God has not rejected His people but for a space of time until the completeness of the fulness of the Gentiles they will be in darkness.  Consider carefully the words found in verses nine through twenty-six as you study this psalm:

But thou hast cast off and put us to shame.

And goes not forth with our armies.

Thou make us to turn back from the enemy.

They which hate us spoil for themselves.

Thou hast given us like sheep appointed for meat.

Thou hast scattered us among the heathen.

Thou sell thy people for nought.

Thou dost not increase thy wealth by their price.

Thou make us a reproach to our neighbors.

We are a scorn and a derision to them that are round about us.

Thou make us a byword among the heathen.

We are a shaking of the head among the people.

My confusion is continually before me.

The shame of my face hath covered me,

For the voice of him those reproaches and blasphemes, by reason of the enemy and avenger.

All this comes upon us; yet have we not forgotten thee.

Neither have we dealt falsely in thy covenant.

Our heart is not turned back, neither have our steps declined from thy way.

Though thou hast sore broken us in the place of dragons and covered us with the shadow of death.

If we have forgotten the name of our God or stretched out our hands to a strange god.

Shall not God search this out? for he knows the secrets of the heart.

Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day long; we are counted as sheep for the slaughter.

Awake, why sleeps thou, O Lord? arise, cast us not off forever.

Wherefore hides thou thy face and forgets our affliction and our oppression.

For our soul is bowed down to the dust: our belly cleaves unto the earth.

Arise for our help and redeem us for thy mercies’ sake. 

This is the reply to verses one through eight in this chapter. 

We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us. 

What work thou didst in their days, in the times of old.

How thou didst drive out the heathen with thy hand and planted them.

How thou didst afflict the people and cast them out.

How your arm saves them: by thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance.

          Because thou hadst a favor unto them.

Thou art my King, O God: command deliverance for Jacob.

Through thee will we push down our enemies.

Through thy name will we tread them under that rise up against us.

For I will not trust in my bow, neither shall my sword save me.

But thou hast saved us from our enemies.

Thou hast put them to shame that hated us.

          In God we boast all the day long and praise thy name for ever. Selah.

The history of the Jewish people is not only a history of a religion, but of a nation of people who have been scattered by God unto the utter ends of the earth.  Their history begins with Abraham around four thousand years ago through his son Isaac. For almost two thousand years after Isaac, we can read how they grew from a small tribe of people to a small nation living and serving the Pharoah in Egypt to a becoming a nation in the Middle East.  For almost fifteen hundred years we can study the rise and fall of this nation from being a group of tribes to a strong nation under three kings and then becoming two divide nations which will then go into captivity and then return to rebuild again.   

And yet in the nearly two thousand years after the destruction of the temple in 70 A.D. by the Romans and the scattering of the Jewish people throughout the entire world they have still retain their national identity over these last two thousand years.  Now for the last seventy-six years Israel is back in land that they can call home.  They have look to this promise return throughout their history and it has now come to past.  Verses nine through twenty-six in this psalm could reflect how the probably felt the last two thousand years.  Reflecting back to Paul’s words in Roman 11:25 “partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fulness of the Gentiles has come in; and thus all Israel be saved” could point to the return of our Lord in the near future.  

Verse twenty-two “Yet for your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered” is used by Paul in Romans 8:36 in response to the question “If God is for us who can be against us”.  In the past my daughter and I would race to see who could quote Romans 8:28 the fastest. It was my desire to make this verse real in her life, since I knew her Christian walk in this life would not be easy. Romans 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose” is the verse that states the conclusion of Paul’s discussion on living your life through the spirit. When studying the book of Romans, we realize that we were born in sin and we do not seek God, but it was God who seeks after us and provided a way back to Him through Christ that we might become sons of God.  Therefore, to understand this psalm in light of Romans chapter eight we must understand that the world lives according to the sinful nature of the old man, and we live according to the spiritual nature of the new man. These two natures have two different masters with two different goals: Christ and glorifying God, man and glorifying man. When we take on the spiritual nature, we take on the nature of a servant just as Christ did when he was on this earth. This new nature then seeks Christ and ways of glorifying God.

When we study the scripture, we must realize that God’s will for man is that we become sons of God. Therefore, it is important that all believers know and completely understand the effects that the fall of man (found in Genesis 3) had on the relationship of God and man that existed before the fall. Before the fall man walk with God, after the fall man hid from God. Christ though his death on the cross has renewed the relationship between God and man. The relationship that existed before the fall (found in Genesis 3) has been restored to man through Christ.

Psalm 43

1 Judge me, O God, and plead my cause against an ungodly nation: O deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man.

2 For thou art the God of my strength: why dost thou cast me off? why go I mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?

3 O send out thy light and thy truth: let them lead me; let them bring me unto thy holy hill, and to thy tabernacles.

4 Then will I go unto the altar of God, unto God my exceeding joy: yea, upon the harp will I praise thee, O God my God.

5 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God.

(KJV)

This psalm is similar to psalm forty-two, however he does request two things: God’s light and God’s truth.   This light and truth can be found in Christ.  As I age and see the events happening in the world, today I cannot help but reflect on this time in David’s life.  Samuel had anointed David as a young lad to become the next king of Israel.  David was probably only thirteen or fourteen at that time.   I am not sure how much this affected his life at the time of the anointing, but soon after he was in the courts of Saul playing his harp for him as well as being one of his armor-bearers. 

Verse three “Send forth your light and your truth, let them guide me; let them bring me to your holy mountain, to the place where you dwell”.  Your light and your truth refer to God’s Word and teachings.  As I reflect back on my life, I realized how God uses the events in our life to shape us.  At age thirteen I entertained myself in the evening by reading.  The books I read were Arthur Maxwell’s Children Bible Stories.  These ten books gave me a wonderful understanding of the Bible.  This led me to a deeper desire to study the Bible.  Studying the examples in God’s Word will give us the hope that David writes in verse five. 

My office contains several hundred commentaries and religious books about the Bible.  Many of these books on how to study your Bible, or how to apply the life application of the scriptures in your life can add insight my daily studies; but they can never replace the daily reading of the Bible in my life.  The more I study the scriptures, the more the Holy Spirit opens my eyes to the truth of God.  To me the Bible is the living Word of God.  In this psalm verse three states “Send forth your light and your truth, let them guide me; let them bring me to your holy mountain, to the place where you dwell”.  As I study the gospel of John, I realized that this light and truth is Christ.  So the more I know about Jesus and the more I let him direct my paths the closer I get to the place that God dwells. 

Psalm 42

1 As the hart pants after the water brooks, so pants my soul after thee, O God.

2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God?

3 My tears have been my meat day and night, while they continually say unto me, Where is thy God?

4 When I remember these things, I pour out my soul in me: for I had gone with the multitude, I went with them to the house of God, with the voice of joy and praise, with a multitude that kept holy day.

5 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted in me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance.

6 O my God, my soul is cast down within me: therefore, will I remember thee from the land of Jordan, and of the Hermonites, from the hill Mizar.

7 Deep calls unto deep at the noise of thy waterspouts: all thy waves and thy billows are gone over me.

8 Yet the Lord will command his loving-kindness in the daytime, and in the night his song shall be with me, and my prayer unto the God of my life.

9 I will say unto God my rock, Why hast thou forgotten me? why go I mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?

10 As with a sword in my bones, mine enemies reproach me; while they say daily unto me, Where is thy God?

11 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God.

This psalm centers on these two questions.

Why are you downcast, O my soul?

Why so disturbed within me?

This psalm centers on these answers.

Put your hope in God,

I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.

Sometimes during our walk on this earth, we seem to walk in a dry and thirsty land. It is during these times that we must remember that the earth is under the curse of sin. We are not in heaven yet but on a journey. We sometimes forget that we are on a journey and live as if this life on earth is it and there is no life after we depart from this earth. However, it is God that leads and sometimes these paths will lead us through a period of testing, or should I state a desert place. The key to getting through these times is to remember who God is (the One that our mind cannot comprehend) and that this is just our journey and not our home. The psalmist also reflects upon his time of worship with others (how I used to go with the multitude, leading the procession to the house of God, with shouts of joy and thanksgiving among the festive throng) during this time of testing. Remember Psalm 62:11-12 “one thing God has spoken two things have I heard: that you, O God are strong, and that you O, Lord are loving.” It is these times of worshiping and praising God that we must look back to when we are in these periods of testing to give us hope for the future.

As I was studying the book There was a Time written by Mary Alice Wilhelm this week, I ran across a list title Nine Aspects of Life written by a source not known in the second chapter. Reflecting on these nine aspects can helps us as believers when we face the two questions that this Psalm presents to us.

Nine Aspects of Life

1. The adventure of life is to learn.

2. The purpose of life is to grow.

3. The nature of life is to change.

4. The challenge of life is to overcome.

5. The essence of life is to care.

6. The opportunity of life is to serve.

7. The secret of life is to dare.

8. The spice of life is to befriend.

9. The beauty of life is to give.

Source not known

As we age and realize that our journey through this world is now much nearer to the end we begin to look back and reevaluate our understanding of the true meaning of life. For those who know God and the work that Christ paid for us on the cross this reevaluation will usually lead to a more rewarding life for us in our later years.

Psalm 41

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

1 Blessed is he that considers the poor: the Lord will deliver him in time of trouble.

2 The Lord will preserve him and keep him alive; and he shall be blessed upon the earth: and thou wilt not deliver him unto the will of his enemies.

3 The Lord will strengthen him upon the bed of languishing: thou wilt make all his bed in his sickness.

4 I said, Lord, be merciful unto me: heal my soul; for I have sinned against thee.

5 Mine enemies speak evil of me, When shall he die, and his name perish?

6 And if he come to see me, he speaks vanity: his heart gathers iniquity to itself; when he goes abroad, he tells it.

7 All that hate me whisper together against me: against me do they devise my hurt.

8 An evil disease, say they, cleaves fast unto him: and now that he lieth he shall rise up no more.

9 Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me.

10 But thou, O Lord, be merciful unto me, and raise me up, that I may requite them.

11 By this I know that thou favor me, because mine enemy doth not triumph over me.

12 And as for me, thou uphold me in mine integrity, and sets me before thy face forever.

13 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel from everlasting, and to everlasting. Amen, and Amen.  (KJV)

Blessed is he who has regard for the poor:

The LORD delivers him in times of trouble.
The LORD will protect him

The LORD will preserve his life

The LORD will bless him in the land

The LORD will not surrender him to the desire of his foes.
The LORD will sustain him on his sickbed

The LORD will restore him from his bed of illness.

I said, “O LORD, have mercy on me; heal me, for I have sinned against you.”

My enemies say of me in malice:

When will he die?

When will his name perish?
Whenever one comes to see me, he speaks falsely

While his heart gathers slander

Then he goes out and spreads it abroad.
All my enemies whisper together against me

They imagine the worst for me, saying, “A vile disease has beset him

He will never get up from the place where he lies.

Even my close friend, whom I trusted, he who shared my bread, has lifted up his heel against me.

But you, O LORD

Have mercy on me

Raise me up, that I may repay them.
I know that you are pleased with me

For my enemy does not triumph over me.
In my integrity you uphold me

Set me in your presence forever.

This is another psalm which we can see the life of David, the life of Christ and the life that we are now living entangled together. Verse eleven “I know that you are pleased with me, for my enemy does not triumph over me” could refer to many enemies.  As we study this psalm it starts out as blessing the one that is a friend to those in need.  As we consider the word friend, we must realize that the word enemy comes from the Latin word inimicus which means unfriendly or hostile.  So, this psalms centers around the behaviors that are either friendly or unfriendly. So, as the psalmist writes in verse eleven “for my enemy does not triumph over me” is referring to these forces that are unfriendly to him.  So, the next time you considered the word enemy considered the word friendship.  To love your enemy is to love these who are not a friend to you.  That is what God did for us on the cross.  We were all unfriendly to God, yet in his love he reached out to us his enemies (whose who were not his friend) to make us his friend.  This is the same love we must reach up to our enemies (those that are not a friend) to make them a friend of ours as well as God.

In his devotional for February 9 titled “Are You Exhausted Spiritually?” Oswald Chambers writes “Examine your reasons for service. Is your source based on your own understanding or is it grounded on the redemption of Jesus Christ?”.  As I read the words of this psalm, I cannot help but see the desire of the Psalmist to fulfill the purpose that God has for him in this life.  Verse eleven states “I know that you are pleased with me.”  However, this desire of having God being pleased with us can sometimes make us feel spiritually exhausted.  This is especially true when we have realized that we have sinned against God.  When sin does take place in our life, we must realize it and turn from it.  This is the examination that Oswald writes about in this devotion.  Paul writes about this call for service in II Timothy 2:21 “If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honor, sanctified, meet for the master’s use, prepared unto every good work.”  There are usually two reasons that I believe Christians become exhausted spiritually: first they are so focus on the things around them that they forget about God; or because they focus on and become assumed by trying to discover what is God’s purpose for them in this life.  To me the answer to renewing a spiritually life is to live blameless before God.

Psalm 40

1 I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me and heard my cry.

2 He brought me up also out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.

3 And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord.

4Blessed is that man that makes the Lord his trust, and respects not the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.

5 Many, O Lord my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered.

6 Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire; mine ears hast thou opened: burnt offering and sin offering hast thou not required.

7 Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book, it is written of me,

8 I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.

9 I have preached righteousness in the great congregation: lo, I have not refrained my lips, O Lord, thou know.

10 I have not hidden thy righteousness within my heart; I have declared thy faithfulness and thy salvation: I have not concealed thy loving-kindness and thy truth from the great congregation.

11 Withhold not thou thy tender mercies from me, O Lord: let thy loving-kindness and thy truth continually preserve me.

12 For innumerable evils have compassed me about: mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, so that I am not able to look up; they are more than the hairs of my head: therefore, my heart fails me.

13 Be pleased, O Lord, to deliver me: O Lord, make haste to help me.

14 Let them be ashamed and confounded together that seek after my soul to destroy it; let them be driven backward and put to shame that wish me evil.

15 Let them be desolate for a reward of their shame that say unto me, Aha, aha.

16 Let all those that seek thee rejoice and be glad in thee: let such as love thy salvation say continually, The Lord be magnified.

17 But I am poor and needy; yet the Lord thinks upon me: thou art my help and my deliverer; make no tarrying, O my God. (KJV)

When studying the scriptures I use three difference verse in my studies.  They are the King James Version (KJV), the New International Version (NIV), and the New American Standard (NASV) my Ryrie Study Bible.  I included my reading of the NIV in today’s devotion because verse six opens up the meaning with the word open as used in the KJV but in the NIV they use the word pierced.  In my Ryrie Study Bible there is a footnote for verse six. “My ears Thou hast opened.  An expression signifying obedience based either on the custom of piercing the ear as a sign of voluntary perpetual service (Exod. 21:6) or on the idea of hearing what God says (Isa. 50:4-5).  Instead of external ceremony only, David realizes that God wants his heart.  In effect, he is saying, “Here I am to do what is prescribed to me as my duty in the law, but to do it from the heart.”

This is one of my favorite psalms with verse six being the key verse that I use to understand this psalm. The writer of Hebrews in chapter 10 verses 5-7 reference this psalm as verses that portrays the earthly ministry of Christ.  Hebrews 10:5-7 “Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said: Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased.  Then I said, ‘Here I am—it is written about me in the scroll I have come to do your will, O God.'”  Another section to consider is Deuteronomy 15:6,7 “But if your servant says to you, ‘I do not want to leave you,’ because he loves you and your family and is well off with you, then take an awl and push it through his ear lobe into the door, and he will become your servant for life.” which is the opened  piercing that I believe that verse six reference.  Deuteronomy fifteen is God’s instruction to Israel on how they should handle the canceling of debts. Verse one of Deuteronomy fifteen states, “At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts” so Israel was to forgive debts every seven years.  With this verse in mind look at the Lord’s prayer in Matthew 6:12 “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” here we are instructed to forgive others.  Debt gives us power, it gives us control over someone, however by releasing the debt we no longer hold the debtor responsible for the debt.  Yet so often we go through the process of forgiving, but do not really release our debtors.  We have a way of reminding them that they do not have to repay the debt but that they are still in debt to us; since we did forgive the debt that they owed us.  In the same way a lot of believers put God in this category of forgiving debt, but we still owe God.  However, in Deuteronomy 15 this is not the true picture of debt forgiveness.  Debts are forgiven completely just as our sins are remember no more.

Now for the true meaning of verse six of this psalm.   Paul states it best in Romans 12:1-2 “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is, his good, pleasing and perfect will.”  Yes, Christ paid the debt for us, yet because of our love for him and knowing that we cannot make it on our own in this world we turn our life back over to God.  We make God our master and not self.  

As you read this psalm take time to read Philippians 2:5-11 were Paul states that we should have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had in our relationship to others.  Christ was Lord, yet he humbles himself and died as a criminal on the cross. The human nature struggle with the issues of pride and humility daily. To aid us in this struggle Paul gives us this advice: don’t be selfish, do not try to impress others, think others as better than yourself, do not look to your own interest but take an interest in others. Do these and the battles against the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life can be won. As I have just finished my course in Leadership, I have realized there are two types of leaders: the leaders that seek their power, and the leaders that are appointed because their services are needed.  Moses is a great example of both leaders.  At age forty he decided that it was his time to stand up for the rights of the children of Israel.  However, his actions were not received by others, and he had to flee for his life.  At this time, he suffers humiliation from those he tried to help.  In this humiliation he lost respect from his people and the Egyptians as well.  In this humiliation he became a shepherd and stepped out of the picture.  It was in this humiliation that God spoke to him.  Moses returned forty years later not in humiliation, but as a humble servant with no agenda of his own.  From Stephen’s sermon in Act chapter seven we see Moses life divided in three parts: God preparing him with knowledge and training that he would needed in the future,  God humbling the character of Moses to prepare him for service, and the last forty years combining the two to perform the task that God had planned 430 years earlier (Exodus 12:41). Highlight Philippians 2:1-11 in your Bible and realized it is only as a humble servant can we truly serve God.

Probably one of the best books that has help me gain a better understanding of my walk with Christ on this earth has been the collection of writings of Oswald Chambers.  His reading from My Upmost for His Highest for September 22^nd helps illustrates the Master and Servant relationship that is illustrated in this psalm.  He sums up his daily reading with this summary “If we are consciously aware that we are being mastered, that idea itself is proof that we have no master. If that is our attitude toward Jesus, we are far away from having the relationship He wants with us. He wants us in a relationship where He is so easily our Master and Teacher that we have no conscious awareness of it—a relationship where all we know is that we are His to obey.”  After my many years of being involved in the work of the church and then years of just attending services I have realized that the task of making Christ the Lord of my life comes about with many hardships.  The short poem of “Footprints in the Sand“ also illustrates the principle of a relationship where He is so easily our Master and Teacher that we have no conscious awareness of it coming out of times of difficulties where we thought God had abandon us to look back and realized that it was really Him that had carry us through the crisis. As you study the psalms you must do so with a complete understanding of David’s life as well as the faith heroes before him. As we study David’s life, we realize that before God can use us, we must face a wilderness journey in which we become totally dependent upon God to get us out. Once this happens then our relationship with Christ changes and is so easy to make him our Master and Teacher.  We arrive at this place in our walk and really do not have any conscious awareness of when this relationship began to take place.

Oswald Chambers reading The Surrendered Life for March 8 ties in beautifully with this Psalm. His opening sentence “To become one with Jesus Christ, a person must be willing not only to give up sin, but also to surrender his whole way of looking at things.” helps bring the true relationship of this Psalm to the individual believer. The Psalm starts out by waiting patiently for the Lord. This implies waiting for his timing in the daily events of my life.  However, it does not imply that I be just like a piece of driftwood floating in the sea of life, but rather I see the opportunities that are before me and present them to the Lord.  He hears me and puts me in the right position to either take fully advantage of them or to abandon them.  This maturity of decision-making only comes from years of walking with the Lord and trusting him completely. Surrendering completely to God’s way of looking requires the practice of daily commune with the Lord in the light of his Word.