Zayin is a psalm about memory. This makes sense, as the predominant letter in this section is a "z" sound and memory is Zakar in Hebrew. Memory is an important element to Old Testament spirituality (as well as contemporary spirituality- the Lord's Supper is a feast of remembrance as well as communion and hope). Memory is about holding someone in your mind and in your heart, it's about integrity to promises you have made. The psalmist thinks of memory in two ways- one that wouldn't surprise us and one that might. The one that wouldn't surprise us is that the psalmist commits to remembering God and God's commandments. This goes beyond simple recall, this is about lifestyle. This is about obedience.
There is also the plea from the psalmist for God to remember God's people. This may sound surprising for us, since we may respond "God is all-knowing, God can't forget you." What may sound odd to us today is actually a statement of faith. God makes very particular promises to act in very particular ways. All the psalmist says is "please do what you said you would do." I wish we as human beings always did what we say we will do. Fortunately, when we call God to remember God's promises, we know we have a God who has never let a promise lapse. May that hope hold you today.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Psalm 119 Vav (41-48)
The Word of God is empowering. It is the Word of God that for centuries, millenia, been speaking truth (and Truth) to power. Nobodies like Amos, Elijah and Moses are filled with God and in turn are able to "speak statutes before kings and not be put to shame." When we rely on God's Word, we are not put to shame.
Agendas happen, though. Agendas come in and hijack the story of God for its own purpose. The devil tried to use the Word of God to hijack Jesus' agenda and manipulate truth into falsehood. And all around us, we see unfamiliarity with God's Word being manipulated. This is nothing new. However, what is new is that with the increased access to the Word has come the unintended consequence of decreased hunger for the Word. Psalm 119 is foreign to us in many ways because the psalmist is so excited about the Word, and we have to discipline ourselves just to get through a chapter a day.
This is not meant for guilt or shame, but rather as reason to pray for Psalm 119 hunger for God's Word. Let's pray that together.
Agendas happen, though. Agendas come in and hijack the story of God for its own purpose. The devil tried to use the Word of God to hijack Jesus' agenda and manipulate truth into falsehood. And all around us, we see unfamiliarity with God's Word being manipulated. This is nothing new. However, what is new is that with the increased access to the Word has come the unintended consequence of decreased hunger for the Word. Psalm 119 is foreign to us in many ways because the psalmist is so excited about the Word, and we have to discipline ourselves just to get through a chapter a day.
This is not meant for guilt or shame, but rather as reason to pray for Psalm 119 hunger for God's Word. Let's pray that together.
Friday, March 11, 2011
Psalm 119 He (33-40)
Today, rather than comments, I'll bring only questions:
1) What are the "worthless things" (verse 37) that your eyes are fixed on?
2) What Scripture verse is one you would like to keep fresh in your mind today?
3) Pray that God would replace the worthless things of the day with the light of God's Word.
1) What are the "worthless things" (verse 37) that your eyes are fixed on?
2) What Scripture verse is one you would like to keep fresh in your mind today?
3) Pray that God would replace the worthless things of the day with the light of God's Word.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Psalm 119 Daleth (25-32)
Here we find another way God uses the Word in our lives. The psalmist has been talking about the sharpening/strengthening aspects of the Word, and has been desiring the transformational power of God's Law. Now, the psalmist finds himself or herself in the lowest of situations. Life has come and dragged the psalmist down. The hunger for God's Word remains, but the hunger has changed. Now, the psalmist isn't looking for growth and renewed obedience. The psalmist is looking just to survive the day.
In the season of Lent, it can be easy to paint a picture of God that is merely the judge of right and wrong. Certainly, God is the only truly righteous judge and always does what is right. However, to limit God only to that role would be to strip the meaning from this passage. God is not only interested in judging the activities of people on earth. God also is the One who gives strength to our weariness. Even the tune "Jesus loves me" reminds me that God is strong when I am weak. In our efforts to renew our obedience to God, let's not forget that God is also near to us in our struggles, and helps us survive, even thrive, to the next day.
In the season of Lent, it can be easy to paint a picture of God that is merely the judge of right and wrong. Certainly, God is the only truly righteous judge and always does what is right. However, to limit God only to that role would be to strip the meaning from this passage. God is not only interested in judging the activities of people on earth. God also is the One who gives strength to our weariness. Even the tune "Jesus loves me" reminds me that God is strong when I am weak. In our efforts to renew our obedience to God, let's not forget that God is also near to us in our struggles, and helps us survive, even thrive, to the next day.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Psalm 119 Gimel (17-24)
Way too often we allow the emotions of other people to control our lives. Way too often we allow ourselves to spend all our time and energy reacting to others rather than doing what we know is right.
With that premise, I read the striving of the psalmist as an attempt to be driven by what is right rather than other considerations. The psalmist yearns for God's Word to be the one steering force in his or her actions, and yet realizes that the deck of life is stacked unfavorably. Rulers, powers, the throngs of the wicked, and probably others devise schemes and strategies to distract the psalmist from right action.
I have no doubt that the deck is stacked against you, too (at least sometimes). We live in a broken world that yearns for eternity but gets caught up in decay. And in our broken world, our relationships can just as easily deter us from God as encourage us in God.
As we enter into Lent, many of us sacrifice something that distracts us from a fuller, richer life in God. These decisions are often deeply personal and private. Let us also make decisions in our relationships to be encouraging and supportive of one another. And let us ask the Holy Spirit for a heart that yearns for God's Word.
With that premise, I read the striving of the psalmist as an attempt to be driven by what is right rather than other considerations. The psalmist yearns for God's Word to be the one steering force in his or her actions, and yet realizes that the deck of life is stacked unfavorably. Rulers, powers, the throngs of the wicked, and probably others devise schemes and strategies to distract the psalmist from right action.
I have no doubt that the deck is stacked against you, too (at least sometimes). We live in a broken world that yearns for eternity but gets caught up in decay. And in our broken world, our relationships can just as easily deter us from God as encourage us in God.
As we enter into Lent, many of us sacrifice something that distracts us from a fuller, richer life in God. These decisions are often deeply personal and private. Let us also make decisions in our relationships to be encouraging and supportive of one another. And let us ask the Holy Spirit for a heart that yearns for God's Word.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Psalm 119 Beth (9-16)
If yesterday's section was about a commitment to a life of transformation and following God, today's section is the natural question that would follow... "How in the world do I do that?"
The answer, according to the psalmist, is simple- God's Word. Often we read the Bible as a riddle that needs an answer, or a mine where gold is carefully concealed or an instruction booklet (usually that other people need to learn from). However, reading the Bible as God's Story is something entirely different, and perhaps is how the psalmist would have us read.
After all, the Bible is not simply Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth, as has been noted by some famous speakers. It is a mysterious and complex journey into the heart of God and God's vision for the world. Meditating on the Word of God is not about making sure we drill something into our minds, but hiding something in our hearts. In other words, learning the story is all about internalizing who God is. And when we begin to put the Word of God into our lives, it is bound to come out in a transformed life. After all, this is why I started this blog in the first place. Hopefully you have been finding growth as you have been reading the Bible with me. May God show you signs of change today.
The answer, according to the psalmist, is simple- God's Word. Often we read the Bible as a riddle that needs an answer, or a mine where gold is carefully concealed or an instruction booklet (usually that other people need to learn from). However, reading the Bible as God's Story is something entirely different, and perhaps is how the psalmist would have us read.
After all, the Bible is not simply Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth, as has been noted by some famous speakers. It is a mysterious and complex journey into the heart of God and God's vision for the world. Meditating on the Word of God is not about making sure we drill something into our minds, but hiding something in our hearts. In other words, learning the story is all about internalizing who God is. And when we begin to put the Word of God into our lives, it is bound to come out in a transformed life. After all, this is why I started this blog in the first place. Hopefully you have been finding growth as you have been reading the Bible with me. May God show you signs of change today.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Psalm 119 Aleph (1-8)
Welcome to Psalm 119, the longest psalm in the Bible. Because of its length, and the variety of its subject matter, we are going to take this psalm in chunks. Something that's kinda neat with this psalm is that every section is marked by a letter in the Hebrew alphabet. The reason it's marked with a letter is because every line in that section begins with that letter. For that reason, Psalm 119 is one of the literary masterpieces of the Bible. Anyway, on to the content of section Aleph...
Here is a common cycle that people can fall into. We recognize that God is holy and acts holy all the time. God's character is consistent from Genesis to Revelation. When we gaze too long at the mirror of God's integrity, we see a poor reflection of our own integrity. When we see fulfilled promises of God, we see broken promises on our end, and so on. However, the Holy Spirit within us gives us a gift. Whereas we might sink into shame and never change from our habits, the Spirit gives us grace and life and the capacity to change. Therefore, like the psalmist, we too can commit ourselves to new obedience. May today be a day of new obedience for us all.
Here is a common cycle that people can fall into. We recognize that God is holy and acts holy all the time. God's character is consistent from Genesis to Revelation. When we gaze too long at the mirror of God's integrity, we see a poor reflection of our own integrity. When we see fulfilled promises of God, we see broken promises on our end, and so on. However, the Holy Spirit within us gives us a gift. Whereas we might sink into shame and never change from our habits, the Spirit gives us grace and life and the capacity to change. Therefore, like the psalmist, we too can commit ourselves to new obedience. May today be a day of new obedience for us all.
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