Lift Up Your Hands in Praise
(NIV) Psalm 134
A song of ascents.
1 Praise the LORD, all you servants of the LORD
who minister by night in the house of the LORD.
2 Lift up your hands in the sanctuary
and praise the LORD.
3 May the LORD bless you from Zion,
he who is the Maker of heaven and earth.
We have reached the last of our Psalms of Ascent. We have climbed as high as we can climb, and it is time to praise God for all He is worth! In Psalm 30 we are told that weeping lasts only for the night, but joy comes in the morning. But now that we have reached the summit, there is only praise!
He brought me out of the miry clay,
Henry J. Zelley, 1898
He set my feet on the Rock to stay;
He puts a song in my soul today,
A song of praise, hallelujah!
I was told as a young girl there is a God-shaped hole in each of our hearts, and it can only be filled by Jesus. Other relationships, while satisfying, will not alleviate the longing deep within. We can buy houses, cars, jewels, but truly only Jesus can satisfy our souls.
Almost fifty years ago, the Holy Spirit fell upon me in such a powerful way that my immediate response was to drop to my knees, and as the tears flowed the praise bubbled up inside of me. I knew then that my life would never be the same.
Then, almost twenty years ago I was in a Bible Study with Rev. Dr. Bryan Fink at Asbury UMC. Bryan emphasized intentional discipleship and I knew that whatever I did from that day forward I had to seek holiness. I have taught holiness, I have preached holiness, and I have lived holiness for most of my life.
Have I been perfected in holiness? No, not this side of heaven. But God is perfecting me in love. I still make mistakes, I still stumble, but my heart’s desire is to be in constant fellowship with Jesus as we travel this pilgrim road, and to take as many people with me as possible.
May we lift our hearts and our voices in continual praise to the One, True, and Living God today and every day, for “every day with Jesus is sweeter than the day before.”
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Unity
(NIV) Psalm 133
A song of ascents. Of David.
1 How good and pleasant it is
when God’s people live together in unity!
2 It is like precious oil poured on the head,
running down on the beard,
running down on Aaron’s beard,
down on the collar of his robe.
3 It is as if the dew of Hermon
were falling on Mount Zion.
For there the LORD bestows his blessing,
even life forevermore.
Unity—the quality of being at one with each other, and in this case, particularly at one with God’s people. David is thought to have written this psalm and it expresses God’s desire that His people not be divided by petty differences but instead, come together as one body.
In my lifetime, I have heard of churches splitting over the color of carpet or the style of singing in the worship service. Of course, theological differences involving issues such as human sexuality or eschatological (end time) predictions have not only severed churches but entire denominations.
David compares living together in unity to the precious oil used to anoint a priest. The oil would run down the head of the priest, onto his beard and then onto his robe. It was a symbol of abundance as it flowed freely and the pleasant aroma of the oil enhanced the experience.
May we seek out unity in our families, churches and in our communities, knowing that such behavior is pleasing to God.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Contentment
(NIV) Psalm 131
A song of ascents. Of David.
1 My heart is not proud, LORD,
my eyes are not haughty;
I do not concern myself with great matters
or things too wonderful for me.
2 But I have calmed and quieted myself,
I am like a weaned child with its mother;
like a weaned child I am content.
3 Israel, put your hope in the LORD
both now and forevermore.
Do you know what it means to be content? The dictionary definition is to be pleased, happy, or satisfied. In this short psalm, David not only declares his contentment, but acknowledges being content is a learned behavior. And David says he learned contentment by not giving in to pride, and by calming himself.
David’s youth spent as a shepherd caring for his father’s sheep provided a great backdrop for the person David was to become. He learned that when the sheep became agitated, they needed to be quieted, and he learned the way to help them was to sing and play soothing songs on his harp.
In this passage, David compares himself to a weaned child. We understand that the process of weaning a child is not easy, but it is necessary. Once the process is completed, the child wants to be with his mother not because of what she can give him, but because of who she is. David had learned to desire God, not for what He had given David, but for Who He was. He finishes by counseling Israel to put her hope in God.
Paul speaks of contentment in his letter to the Philippians, 4:11-13, when he says he has learned to be content in all things. Again, Paul says such contentment is a learned behavior.
Consider how we have learned to quiet the fears and concerns in our lives. Is it something physical such as gardening or cooking, or is it spending time in prayer and meditation? Whatever our situation, may we know, believe, and understand that God is our source of contentment, and our very reason for hoping. May we approach Him early and often.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Lord, Hear My Voice
(NIV) Psalm 130
A song of ascents.
1 Out of the depths I cry to you, LORD;
2 Lord, hear my voice.
Let your ears be attentive
to my cry for mercy.
3 If you, LORD, kept a record of sins,
Lord, who could stand?
4 But with you there is forgiveness,
so that we can, with reverence, serve you.
5 I wait for the LORD, my whole being waits,
and in his word I put my hope.
6 I wait for the Lord
more than watchmen wait for the morning,
more than watchmen wait for the morning.
7 Israel, put your hope in the LORD,
for with the LORD is unfailing love
and with him is full redemption.
8 He himself will redeem Israel
from all their sins.
I have read this psalm more than once, allowing its message to penetrate my soul. Do you need mercy? Go to the Lord. Do you need forgiveness? Go to the Lord. Do you need hope? Go to the Lord. Do you need redemption? Go to the Lord.
When we have taken everything to God, then wait. We can have a confident expectation that God, our Creator, and Jesus, our Redeemer, and the Holy Spirit, our Comforter and our Guide, will meet our needs. Rest in the assurance that comes from the Scriptures, our past experience, and our future hope.
May today be a day of blessed assurance.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Free Indeed
(NIV) Psalm 129
A song of ascents.
1 “They have greatly oppressed me from my youth,”
let Israel say;
2 “they have greatly oppressed me from my youth,
but they have not gained the victory over me.
3 Plowmen have plowed my back
and made their furrows long.
4 But the LORD is righteous;
he has cut me free from the cords of the wicked.”
5 May all who hate Zion
be turned back in shame.
6 May they be like grass on the roof,
which withers before it can grow;
7 a reaper cannot fill his hands with it,
nor one who gathers fill his arms.
8 May those who pass by not say to them,
“The blessing of the LORD be on you;
we bless you in the name of the LORD.”
One of my favorite pictures is one Larry took in Iceland. It is a house in a country setting and the roof is grass. Not a thatched roof, but green grass. But the grass in today’s scripture is not green, indicating health, but is dying.
In this passage, the psalmist remembers the oppression of the Isaraelites but cannot forget God’s faithfulness in freeing them from their captors. But then the psalm moves into the kind of prayer that makes me more than uncomfortable. Verse 5 moves from a prayer of thanksgiving to one cursing the wicked, or an imprecatory prayer.
I have not always suffered graciously. I recall writing a poem more than twenty years ago where I said perhaps I needed a glass of wine to accompany my whine at the end of the day. Whether the pain is physical or mental, self inflicted or brought about by illness or other of life’s circumstances, it has taken me a lifetime to learn that thanking God, whatever my situation, is always the better choice.
May we be quick to remember the “goodness of God in the land of the living,” Psalm 27.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Seeking Holiness 