Posts Tagged ‘Psalms’
Today we continue our closer look at the “works of the law” or “observance of the law” from Galatians 2:16. This is important because ever since the Reformation it has been widely proposed that Paul was refuting a Jewish belief that a person was “saved” by earning their salvation through good works, and that those good works are what Paul meant by “works of the law.” Nowadays, we extend that same formula to condemn any attempts to “be good” or do good things as a form of “legalism.”
The problem – as any informed Jew will tell you – is that the Jews never taught a form of works-based righteousness. In other words, they were never trying to “earn their way into heaven” (and I would argue hardly anyone today, Jew or otherwise, is trying to do so either).
- Read Psalm 143, paying special attention to verse 2.
- Read Galatians 2:11-21, paying special attention to verse 16.
- Read Romans 3:9-20, paying special attention to verse 20.
Paul is quoting a variety of OT sources (he quotes Psalm 143:2 in both Gal 2:16 and Rom 3:20) that echo the Jewish understanding that none were righteous in God’s eyes.
So, if Paul isn’t coming against an early form of earning salvation by good works, what might he be speaking against? This is not an easy question to answer, but look for clues in Galatians chapters 1-2. As yourself, what is the issue at hand? Is it doing good deeds or something else?
and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
3 You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.
4 Before a word is on my tongue
you, LORD, know it completely.
5 You hem me in behind and before,
and you lay your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.
7 Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,”
12 even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.
13 For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
16 your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
17 How precious to me are your thoughts, [a] God!
How vast is the sum of them!
18 Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand—
when I awake, I am still with you.
19 If only you, God, would slay the wicked!
Away from me, you who are bloodthirsty!
20 They speak of you with evil intent;
your adversaries misuse your name.
21 Do I not hate those who hate you, LORD,
and abhor those who are in rebellion against you?
22 I have nothing but hatred for them;
I count them my enemies.
23 Search me, God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.
One of the remarkable things about the Psalms – and David’s writing in particular – is the intimacy being expressed. The use of “I” and “You” represent two concepts previously unexplored in ancient literature: the personal voice and the intimate God. This is the same kind of deep intimacy we encounter in the prayers of Jesus.
As we wind down our time in the Psalms and our study of prayer in genera, this prayer by David from Psalm 86 seems to sum up many of the touch points in prayer we’ve visited.
Hear, O LORD, and answer me,
for I am poor and needy.
2 Guard my life, for I am devoted to you.
You are my God; save your servant
who trusts in you.
3 Have mercy on me, O Lord,
for I call to you all day long.
4 Bring joy to your servant,
for to you, O Lord,
I lift up my soul.
5 You are forgiving and good, O Lord,
abounding in love to all who call to you.
6 Hear my prayer, O LORD;
listen to my cry for mercy.
7 In the day of my trouble I will call to you,
for you will answer me.
8 Among the gods there is none like you, O Lord;
no deeds can compare with yours.
9 All the nations you have made
will come and worship before you, O Lord;
they will bring glory to your name.
10 For you are great and do marvelous deeds;
you alone are God.
11 Teach me your way, O LORD,
and I will walk in your truth;
give me an undivided heart,
that I may fear your name.
12 I will praise you, O Lord my God, with all my heart;
I will glorify your name forever.
13 For great is your love toward me;
you have delivered me from the depths of the grave.
14 The arrogant are attacking me, O God;
a band of ruthless men seeks my life—
men without regard for you.
15 But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God,
slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.
16 Turn to me and have mercy on me;
grant your strength to your servant
and save the son of your maidservant.
17 Give me a sign of your goodness,
that my enemies may see it and be put to shame,
for you, O LORD, have helped me and comforted me.
Prayer Exercise
Much like the Lord’s prayer, this covers a wide range of human concerns. Take some time to pray through this Psalm much like we practiced with the Lord’s prayer, using it as a kind of outline. This is much longer than the Lord’s prayer, so you may want to select four or five verses that seem particularly striking to you and use those. If it helps, you could print it out double-spaced, and then write in the margins your own similar prayers alongside David’s.
Troubled over all the evil and injustice in the world? It’s hard not to be, because we’re aware of so much of it. Refugees running from murderous regimes. The slave trade is alive and well. People are “disappeared” all the time by corrupt governments. Torture is renamed “enhanced interrogation techniques” and becomes acceptable. And then there’s the complicated, tragic mess that is Haiti.
It’s overwhelming! Which seems to be why Psalm 37 is in the Bible. It has the potential to be an extremely irritating psalm, though, because it essentially tells us not to get so worked up over evil. The most annoying time to hear “don’t get angry” is when you’re angry. But there it is, three times in the first few verses:
“Don’t worry about the wicked” (1)
“Don’t worry about evil people” (7)
“Don’t lose your temper” (8)
Aren’t we supposed to be angry about the injustice in the world? Aren’t we supposed to care? What’s with all the don’t worry, be happy talk?
Psalm 37 helps us understand, and is a powerful tool against worry and rage in the face of evil. It empowers us in three ways:
- It tells us why we don’t need to worry: because God will bring about justice for his people in his own time and his own way. God is taking care of things and will make sure justice is done. In the end “the meek will inherit the land and will live in peace and prosperity” (11). Jesus quoted this psalm in the beatitudes, which likewise call for patience and faithfulness in the face of evil.
- The way it tells us why is also important: it’s written as an acrostic poem, every other line begins with the next letter of the Hebrew alphabet. It lends itself to repeating the same ideas in different ways. When we’re upset, we’re like children who simply need to be told over and over, and in many different ways, that everything is going to be alright. Psalm 37 does that.
- This psalm also tells us how to trust God despite the evil we encounter every day: “Trust in the Lord” (3). “Take delight in the Lord” (4). “Commit everything you do to the Lord” (5). “Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act” (7), etc.
Prayer exercise
Take a moment and identify what is worrying you right now. What people or situations are bothering you, causing anger or worry to rise up in you?
Now read Psalm 37 in its entirety out loud, pausing to reflect when a command is given to trust in the Lord or take delight in the Lord. Perhaps you’ll want to keep a bookmark at that place in your Bible so you can return to this Psalm when the injustice of the world starts to overwhelm you again.
As Christians it’s common to think we’re not allowed to pray for ourselves and, even worse, we sometimes think our prayers are always supposed to be upbeat, thankful and grateful.
David knew better. He understood that prayer is supposed to be a raw form of communication with God, stripped of all pretense, and accordingly, he made good use of the ancient Jewish practice of lament. Consider Psalm 6:
1O LORD, do not rebuke me in your anger
or discipline me in your wrath.
2 Be merciful to me, LORD, for I am faint;
O LORD, heal me, for my bones are in agony.
3 My soul is in anguish.
How long, O LORD, how long?
4 Turn, O LORD, and deliver me;
save me because of your unfailing love.
5 No one remembers you when he is dead.
Who praises you from the grave?
6 I am worn out from groaning;
all night long I flood my bed with weeping
and drench my couch with tears.
7 My eyes grow weak with sorrow;
they fail because of all my foes.
8 Away from me, all you who do evil,
for the LORD has heard my weeping.
9 The LORD has heard my cry for mercy;
the LORD accepts my prayer.
10 All my enemies will be ashamed and dismayed;
they will turn back in sudden disgrace.
This is a classic prayer of lament. It taps into a tradition of that goes deeper than mere cathartic self-expression, rather it dares to remind Yahweh of his own oligation to be faithful. Old Testament scholar Walter Bruggeman notes:
“As doxology celebrates the peculiar character of Yahweh as faithful, so complaints [or lament] insists upon Yahweh’s faithfulness and protest against Yahweh’s refusal to be visibly and effectively faithful.”
Lament gives a necessary voice to the pent-up frustration of a world gone mad, or the exhaustion of a life lived in senseless trial and suffering. Against such atrocities as war, exploitation, slavery, and rape the reverent prayer of assent (”thy will be done”) is often an affront to the God whose main attribute is hesed, or “lovingkindness.” Unto a God who claims to be the source of extravagant mercy, grace, and love, only a passionate plea for vindication is appropriate in certain circumstances.
These are bold and courageous prayers, the kind that take chances and risk disappointment, but which acknowledge the the Old Testament God who is moved by reminders of his own character and covenant promises.
Prayer Exercise
What do you need to lament? Set aside enough time alone to pray through the frustrations you have using Psalm 6 as a outline and touch-point, much like we’ve learned to do with the Lord’s prayer.
Our final week of the prayer series will focus on learning to pray from the Psalms.
Today, read Psalm 19.
This psalm is a celebration of a God who speaks in both the skies (1-6) and the Scriptures (7-14). Most of us today can get our heads around the fact that God speaks through creation. But I would be surprised if many of us could really relate to David’s breathless praise for the Bible in these verses. More precious than gold? Sweeter than honey? Really?
Maybe you can relate to John Bunyan, who seemed to have had a kind of bi-polar relationship with Scripture: “Sometimes there has been more in a line of Scripture than I could bear to stand under. Other times, the Bible has been to me as dry as a stick.” It’s good to know we’re in good company when we find the Bible boring, dry, uninteresting, and hard to read. It’s a common experience.
But we shouldn’t become apathetic about it, either. If prayer is a two-way conversation with God about what we are doing together, then the Scriptures are a critical part of it, because they make up the main part of God’s side of the conversation! I want to be moving toward a place where I can pray Psalm 19 with David and deeply mean every word of it.
Prayer exercise
This exercise is taken from God’s Prayer Book, by Ben Patterson (an excellent resource on learning to pray the Psalms, by the way).
Read the following sections of Psalm 19 again do the exercises:
- Ask yourself, How would I act if I believed there is treasure hidden in the Bible? If you had in your hands a map showing you where you could find great material treasure, wouldn’t you apply yourself diligently to crack any code or language and overcome any mountain, weather, or foe to find the treasure?
- Now turn your face heavenward. Open your mouth to the Lord and say, “Lord, let me taste the sweetness of your Word.”
How can I know all the sins lurking in my heart? Cleanse me from these hidden faults. Keep your servant from deliberate sins! Don’t let them control me. Then I will be free of guilt and innocent of great sin. (12-13)
- Ask yourself, Do I really expect, or want, to meet God when I read the Bible? “It’s not what I don’t understand in the Bible that worries me,” wrote Mark Twain. “It’s what I do understand.” If you need to, confess your apathy toward the Bible. Perhaps it is a smoke screen to hid your fear of exposure.
- Look at the words David uses for the power and deceit of sin: lurking, hidden, deliberate–all controlling your will and desires. Cry out to God, “Don’t let them do this to me!”
May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. (14)
- Ask the Lord to so fill you with the purity and sweetness of his law (like fine gold and honey) that your interior life will be transformed, that your every thought will reflect his character.
(This exercise was written by Ben Sternke as part of our prayer journey with Christ Church, Fort Wayne)
Our series on prayer began last week by focusing on the Lord’s Prayer. This week we will be looking at several passages from the gospels where Jesus teaches about prayer. Today we start with a look at Matthew 6:5-8. Take some time to read the passage slowly and carefully, jotting down any thoughts or questions you have. Then continue on to read the rest of this post and do the prayer exercise at the end.
Praying to be seen
Jesus teaches us not to pray “like the hypocrites,” who love to pray in public spaces, not because they love God but because they love the commendation they receive from others when they do so. The word “hypocrite” is simply what we would call an “actor” today: people who are pretending to be someone else. The hypocrites are those who are pretending to pray, but really they are simply seeking the recognition of other people. “They have received their reward,” Jesus says. In other words, their prayers had nothing to do with God, so God stayed out of the way. The purpose of their project was getting the attention of other people. That which they sought, they got: attention from others. It had nothing to do with God, so God didn’t involve himself where he wasn’t invited or wanted.
Instead, Jesus tells us, we are to go to our rooms and close the door and pray to our Father, who sees what is done in secret and will reward us. The point is not that public prayer ought never to occur. This would outlaw any kind of corporate prayer. The point is that we ought to simply and honestly bring our concerns and petitions to God, without giving much thought to how we appear to others. When we pray in this way, Jesus tells us we can expect a reward from our Father.
Praying to accumulate merit
So we are not to pray like hypocrites. Jesus also teaches not to pray like “pagans,” people who “keep on babbling” because they think if they shout loud enough or stay fervent enough that the gods might answer because they are impressed with their desperation. These are people who are worried that unless they continually present the “shopping list” to God, he’s going to forget what their needs are. Jesus tells us quite clearly, “Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” Ours is not a god who is far-off and uninterested, like a father who’d rather read the newspaper and watch TV than engage with his family. The God we call Father is absolutely good, absolutely able, and absolutely wise to carry out his purposes and provide for our needs.
Prayer exercise
Set aside a good 20-30 minutes for this exercise. In this short passage Jesus is teaching that the basis of our prayer life needs to be a confidence that God is an interested, caring Father. Many of us struggle to really live in the constant awareness that God sees us, knows our needs, and longs to meet them. In order to take this from an abstract concept into a concrete belief, we’re going to riff off Psalm 136.
Psalm 136 starts with a general call to give thanks to the Lord, because his love never quits. It then goes into some very specific events in the life of Israel, always echoed by the refrain, “His love never quits!” You’re going to write your own personal Psalm 136:
- First draw a graph of your life. The horizontal axis is time and the vertical axis is how close you felt to God, or how well you felt your life was going. Think of significant events, both good and bad, and trace a path of your life.
- Now think of the significant moments those points on the graph represent, and begin writing your Psalm, using the words below as the general pattern.
I thank you, High God
Because your love never quits.
Your love has been with me
From the moment of my conception until now.When I first said ‘yes’ to you as a child, naïve and trusting,
Your love was there.
When I spent years in apathy and wanting to fit in
Your love was there.
When I first gave you my whole life, laid everything down,
Your love was there.…etc…
And now as you’re bringing me into an unknown future,
Your love is here.
- Simply pray your Psalm back to God and rest in his love.
Today marks our second Advent gathering together. We’ll be meeting at the Kipley’s at 6:30PM. Our passages for tonight are:
- Malachi 3:1-4
- Psalm 25:3-4
- Luke 3:1-6
Kids are included and everyone should have their assignments for this weekend. Feel free to invite anyone ot join us for the worship gathering and please be sure to arrive on time and bring a snack or desert to share.
In the rhythm of life we’ve proposed for Ikon Community, “spiritual formation” (or discipleship) stands at the very heart of the life of faith. Last night we talked about some ideas for seeing discipleship differently. This week I’ll post a series of articles meant to stimulate our thinking on this topic.
The trouble with talking about spiritual formation is that spirit is invisible. How do we know if we are becoming spiritually strong or good? How do we know who requires more or less spiritual training? In the church we talk about “spirit,” but don’t explore what exactly it is.
So, what exactly is our spirit? What exactly are we trying to form when we seek to becomes disciples?
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Not only did Jesus tell us to make disciples, but he told us how to make disciples. In the Great Commission (Matt 28:18-20), Jesus lays out a method of spiritual formation that is from the inside-out:
- “Make disciples” - Enlist people as students of Jesus, engaging their mind and their will (or their “hearts”) in the intentional experience of learning from him.
- “Baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit” - This doesn’t just refer to dunking people underwater. It literally means to immerse (”baptize”) them into the presence and reality of the triune God. Put another way, we must immerse people in the kind of life that is full of the work of the living God. That is exactly what Christ did with his disciples.
- “Teach them to obey everything I have commanded” - Specifically, teach them the faithful outward acts of a genuine inward faith, like those found in the Sermon on the Mount (Matt 5-7). This means to praise them when they succeed, correct them when they’re wrong, and encourage them when they’re tired.
