Psalm 70: Deliverance and God's Reign

 

Blessed Holy Week to all. This week in our devotions, the Leadership Huddle and I are looking at each day's texts through the lens of the "Hexagon," or the six priorities found in the Lord's prayer. They are:

God's CHARACTER (Father in heaven, hallowed be your name)

God's KINGDOM (Your kingdom come; your will be done on earth as in heaven)

God's PROVISION (Give us this day our daily bread)

God's FORGIVENESS (Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us)

God's GUIDANCE (Lead us not into temptation/save us from the time of trial)

God's PROTECTION (Deliver us from evil)

For Tuesday in Holy Week, I am focusing on God's KINGDOM. So what does Psalm 70 have to say about God's Kingdom? 

The original context for this psalm is King David, God's anointed ruler. David had several times when enemies were seeking his life: first King Saul, and years later, his son Absalom. God had warned the people years ago that this kind of violent power struggle would ensue if the people wanted human rulers instead of letting God continue to be their King. God's Reign is peace and equity, but human reign is strife, violence and chaos. When there is peace, it's peace enforced at the point of a sword. 

This psalm pops up in Holy Week because David's ancestor, Jesus, is once again pursued by violence and death. His disciples don't know it yet, but Jesus' fate was sealed the moment he walked into the temple, turned over tables, and drove out money changers. All day today, he has tried to show God's Reign in his teachings, and his healings. Right in the temple court, in front of everyone, his healing sets free those with any ailments and his teachings confound the conventional wisdom of the religious teachers. But there will be a cost. Jesus knows this, and is trying to prepare himself and his disciples for it. The true victory of God's Reign is yet to come. 

God's reign doesn't necessarily come in the picture perfect moments of harmony. Sometimes it comes in the desperate cries for rescue, like those of David, and later Jesus. It comes in those moments when we trust, despite our fear, that God is our helper and deliverer.

Prayer: O God, may your peace reign in our hearts when we are troubled. May trust and faith reign in our voices when we cry to you. Help us stop seeking to avoid uncomfortable situations, but to see how you reign even in the midst of them. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.  

Haggai 2:1-9 Work, For I am With You

 

Isaiah 44:1-8

 

Observation: In a time of fear and doubt, God comforts the people of Israel. Not only is the Lord their God, but the Lord is the only god there is. Not only was God present and active in each of their own lives since birth, but from the start of creation, to the very end. 

Application: You have no idea how much I need to hear these words today. God is so much bigger than any problem I face. God has been active in my life even hen I didn't know it. God has seen what I'm going through and God already has a plan to help, heal and save. And the ultimate plan came to fruition in becoming flesh, serving, loving, and dying for me and the whole creation.

Prayer: God, my first and last, the first and last word in the cosmos: Thank you for helping me from birth on. Please help me believe and trust that you will continue to help and save me through all my days. Amen. 

Numbers 20:1-13 Striking the Rock Twice

 

Observation: the people of Israel are once again grumbling or "murmuring" against Moses, this time because the land is dry and they can't find good water. God tells Moses to "command" water to come from the nearest rock. Moses goes before the people and asks doubtfully, "Shall we bring water from this rock?" Then, instead of speaking to the rock as God commanded, he strikes the rock--twice--and water flows from there. The congregation is saved, but because of Moses' very public moment of doubt and disobedience, God tells him he will not live to lead the people into the Promised Land. 

Application: The rabbis over the years have determined that this takes place thirty eight years into the forty years of wandering in the wilderness. The finish line is so, so close. And yet just at the end, in a moment of doubt and frustration, Moses stumbles. I have so much empathy for him. He's done everything right, he's obeyed God at every turn, and right here at the end he has one moment of weakness. it's heartbreaking. 

If even Moses has moments of doubt--moments when he doesn't listen as well as he should, moments of insecurity and anger, where he strikes the rock instead of speaking to it, where he lashes out at the people with sarcasm instead of simply drawing attention to what God will do--maybe it's alright if I have them too. Messing up publicly is par for the course for Christian leaders. It's humiliating when we're under stress and we don't react as we should, but we're human beings and sometimes it happens. Thankfully, the same grace we always point out to others is also available to us. Even Moses, who died in the wilderness, ends up at Jesus' side when he's transfigured on the mountain. May we trust that the same can happen for us. 

Prayer: God, sometimes I get stressed, and I doubt. My words and actions fall short of your standard for a disciple and leader of disciples. Have mercy. Like Moses' story, may my story, however imperfect, show forth your grace. Amen. 

 

Hebrews 9:23-28 He Sacrificed Himself

 

Observation: The author of Hebrews speaks of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross as similar to animal sacrifice in the Jerusalem temple, except 1) this sacrifice is before the Heavenly Temple, not the one on earth; 2) This sacrifice doesn't need to be repeated annually, it is once and for all. 

Application: Jesus didn't just sacrifice an animal or give of his possessions for me. he sacrificed himself--his own body and blood. Everyone I meet is someone for whom Jesus sacrificed himself. And when I feel down on myself, I remember: he did it for me, too. 

Prayer: Jesus, you are my high priest, and you offer the final sacrifice: yourself. Thank you. help me remember. 

 

 

Psalm 105 Remembering to Trust

 

Hebrews 11:1-3, 13-19 Living with an Unfinished Picture