Renewing Your Joy For The Holidays

This year seems to have flown right by—the holidays are upon us once again. It’s been a brutal year; one I do not wish to repeat. 2015 has been a year of struggle in my world, and human tragedy and suffering around the globe. The news and the vignette on my dresser remind me of a prayer assignment for country I long to see; it renewed my resolve to pray. 

Though some events cause us to feel like Sam Wise Gamgee in The Two Towers, “How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad has happened?”[1] Even Sam understood that the darkness will pass: “But in the end it's only a passing thing this shadow, even darkness must pass. A new day will come, and when the sun shines it'll shine out the clearer.”[2]

The holidays are a season of joy and thankfulness, yet every year I dread them. Talking with my mother on the phone last week, I hate the holidays, came pouring from my lips. I wish they would arrive and just be over with, I continued. I knew as soon as these words poured out from my lips, that the dread and drudgery had taken control of my mind and my heart. They came too easy; my fallenness finding expression. I sighed deep, and in frustration breathed, I need to figure out some way to enjoy the holidays. Why should I be miserable when I have so much to be thankful for? Why should celebrating the greatest gift ever given to this fallen world, bring dread and discouragement?  The Creator of the universe desired to dwell with humanity and came to the world in human skin. There was no fire or earthquake at His advent, the world slept as the King of Glory entered our chronos to tabernacle with His people, and to reconcile them to the Father.  

As I reflected on my attitude, and why the holidays are so dreary for me, I determined that it is not really Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years that steal my joy. They represent the end of yet another year that I did not accomplish all I wanted to—in fact I fell far short of my plans and intentions, and the end of the year reminds me of how I failed. I have promises yet fulfilled, and prayers unanswered, and another year means I am still in the same place. I just don’t want to celebrate another trip around the mountain.

I also realized that my perception of the holidays reflects a stronghold in my mind. I have been stuck in a pattern or cycle of false perceptions for many years concerning the holidays; if I don’t change my perception, I will stay stuck.

We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. 2 Cor. 10:5

I must cast down this stronghold from my mind; the sighing out of I must find a way to enjoy the holidays, caused me to be determined to change my perception. I want to change the way I perceive them. But this change must not be only for the holidays, it must last from January to December, because truth be told, I dread them all year—a hanging cloud on the horizon. This is not just a momentary change for a season, I need to relearn gratitude—as a wise bishop challenged his flock. The way to break the discouragement is to be thankful for everything. When I begin to feel discouraged, I praise Him, I find something to be thankful for. Blessing and cursing cannot come from the same mouth.

From the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way. James 3:10

We must make the choice ourselves to change our thinking and perceptions. A new day will come—if we choose to have a new day. When we choose to change our thinking, we are breaking the strongholds that keep us locked deep in discouragement. We must develop a habit of gratitude. The bishop challenged the flock to journal the things they’re grateful for. I have been privately, but I was apprehensive to share because it seems to be the theme of most blogs during this season. But how can I thank Him enough? I could write them a thousand times, and still not fully express my thankfulness 

for all He has done.

If we want a new life, or just to get out of the mundane, we have to be grateful for where we are now. God can’t move us to something new when we can’t be thankful in the old. I refuse to be unhappy or miserable during this season, I want my joy to be renewed. The Lord will renew my joy, if I change my thinking and become grateful in the mundane—the Holy often occurs in the mundane.

If you feel stuck return to the Word to relearn gratitude. The Psalms are a prayer tool, and a life line for worship. The poetry and prose of David and the other worshipers are breathtaking.

I have been reciting this Psalm for about a year, in the morning and the evening:

It is good to give thanks to the Lord and to sing praises to Your name O Most High; to declare Your Lovingkindness in the morning and Your faithfulness by night. Psalm 92:1-2

These are a few other passages that I read frequently:

Give thanks to the Lord for His love endures forever. 2 Chron. 20:21

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, For His lovingkindness is everlasting. Psalm 107:1

This is the day that the Lord has made; I will rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24

Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth. Serve the Lord with gladness; Come before Him with joyful singing. Know that the Lord Himself is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people and the sheep of His pasture. Enter His gates with thanksgiving And His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him, bless His name. For the Lord is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting And His faithfulness to all generations. Psalm 100

O come, let us sing for joy to the Lord, Let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving, Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms. For the Lord is a great God And a great King above all gods, in whose hand are the depths of the earth, the peaks of the mountains are His also. The sea is His, for it was He who made it, and His hands formed the dry land. Come, let us worship and bow down, Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker. Psalm 95: 1-6

O LORD, You are my God; I will exalt You, I will give thanks to Your name; for You have worked wonders, Plans formed long ago, with perfect faithfulness. Isaiah 25:1

You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have loosed my sackcloth and girded me with gladness, that my soul may sing praise to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever. Psalm 30:11-12

I will rejoice greatly in the Lord, My soul will exult in my God; For He has clothed me with garments of salvation, He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. Is. 61:10

Arise, bless the Lord your God forever and ever! O may Your glorious name be blessed and exalted above all blessing and praise! “You alone are the Lord. You have made the heavens, The heaven of heavens with all their host, The earth and all that is on it, The seas and all that is in them. You give life to all of them and the heavenly host bows down before You. Nehemiah 9:5-7

Start by thanking Him for loving you and dying for you…if He does nothing else for me, the cross is enough, and I cannot thank Him enough—had I all of eternity to express it.

#1 Thank you for your salvation. Thank you for loving me, dying for me, and saving me.

 The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing. Zeph.3:17

#2 Thank you for filling me and sealing me with Your Holy Spirit.

And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness. Acts 4:31

In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise. Eph. 1:13

#3 Thank you for Your Word and Your promises.

Consider how I love Your precepts; Revive me, O LORD, according to Your lovingkindness.
Psalm 119:59

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. Heb. 10:23

I pray this helps you have a new perception of the season. I pray you will renew your gratitude, not just for Thanksgiving, but the whole year through.

---

[1] The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, DVD (Los Angeles: New Line Home Entertainment, 2003) disk 2.

[2] Ibid. 

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Psalms To See Me Through: Psalm Twenty-Two A Cry Of Anguish

For the choir director; upon Aijeleth Hashshahar. A Psalm of David.

My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? (v.1)

It was a somber day. The air chilling; death inevitable; hate abounding. Christ is hanging on the cross. He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross (see Phil. 2:8). He is seeking the Father’s face, but for a brief moment in time, heaven has turned away. Jesus feels the despair of being separated from the Father. He is nailed to the tree to bridge that gap for all mankind. In His suffering, Jesus reaches back almost one-thousand years to the prophetic Psalm of David;

And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matt 27:46 ESV).

Far from my deliverance are the words of my groaning. (v.1)

Jesus felt the separation from the Father when He took the sin of the world on His shoulders. It felt as though God was far away. It feels like that for us to sometimes in the midst of our anguish.

O my God, I cry by day, but You do not answer; And by night, but I have no rest. Yet You are holy, O You who are enthroned upon the praises of Israel (vv. 2-3).

Many times we suffer through trials and the heavens seem as brass. Sleep is lost to the tossing and turning, the writhing of the hands, the swirling of the thoughts. But we, like David, must remind ourselves of who God is. He is always faithful.

In You our fathers trusted; They trusted and You delivered them. To You they cried out and were delivered; In You they trusted and were not disappointed (vv.4-5).

David begins by declaring His trust in the faithfulness of the Lord, but then in the same breath exempts Himself:

But I am a worm and not a man, A reproach of men and despised by the people. All who see me sneer at me; They separate with the lip, they wag the head, saying, “Commit yourself to the Lord; let Him deliver him; Let Him rescue him, because He delights in him” (vv. 6-8).

These words are prophetic and evoke the events at the cross that day. These words ring familiar from Matthew’s gospel:

He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him… (27:43 ESV).

Don’t buy the lie that God delivered the patriarchs but ignores your cries. When God seems silent, it does not mean He is far away. He is calling you into fellowship with Him. Do you trust Him? Is He faithful? Is He far away? Do you believe in Him? He is deep calling to deep…

David in the midst of his despair, remembers yet again the God of his fathers. He remembers the journey in which God has brought him. Yes, God is faithful even when He seems silent. I may not be able to trace Him in the silence, but I can trust Him. I can trust Him by remembering how far He has already brought me…

Yet You are He who brought me forth from the womb; You made me trust when upon my mother’s breasts. Upon You I was cast from birth; You have been my God from my mother’s womb (vv.9-10).

Before you were born, He was your God. He has a plan and a purpose for you. He did not bring you this far only to fail you now. He will not let you drown:

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, Nor will the flame burn you (Isaiah 43:2 NASB).

Believers are not immune to trouble. Jesus promised that trouble should be expected. But He also promised that He has already overcome it (see Jn. 16:33). He made that promise so that we will have peace. The Lord is only a prayer away. He may not calm the storm, but He may calm you in the midst of it. He wants us to know that He is our anchor. He is our strong tower. He is a refuge for all that come to Him.

Be not far from me, for trouble is near; For there is none to help. Many bulls have surrounded me; Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled me. They open wide their mouth at me, As a ravening and a roaring lion. I am poured out like water, And all my bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It is melted within me. My strength is dried up like a potsherd, And my tongue cleaves to my jaws; And You lay me in the dust of death. For dogs have surrounded me; A band of evildoers has encompassed me; They pierced my hands and my feet.  I can count all my bones. They look, they stare at me; They divide my garments among them, And for my clothing they cast lots.  But You, O Lord, be not far off; O You my help, hasten to my assistance.  Deliver my soul from the sword, My only life from the power of the dog. Save me from the lion’s mouth; From the horns of the wild oxen You answer me (vv. 11-21).

These words of misery and anguish are attributed to the Messiah, and though they seem hopeless, they are far from it. This prose paints a vivid picture of what Jesus endured on that cross, and it would seem that He felt that God had forsaken Him. We feel that way when we are enduring a trial or a hard season. The loneliness is unbearable at times. It must have been for Christ as well;

For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin (Heb. 4:15).

Christ in all His anguish still trusted in God, even in the moment that He turned away. He still in the end, committed His spirit into the hands of the Father. He knew the dark and the loneliness would be only a moment in time.

Though this poetry has Messianic implications, don’t overlook the poet that penned these words—David. He too is in anguish, surrounded by many who seek to harm him, and their mocking is unrelenting. But like Christ our ultimate example, David reaches past the darkness and anguish and finds words of praise and worship. He recalls the faithfulness of God through the ages. He reminds Israel to stand in awe of Him.  

Read the remaining verses with awe and meditate on His magnificence. He is worthy of all glory honor and power. Cast all your cares on Him. Give Him all your trouble. Praise Him for His deliverance past, present, and future. He is faithful. He is trustworthy. He is glorious and mighty. He is beautiful. He is spectacular.

I will tell of Your name to my brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will praise You. You who fear the Lord, praise Him; All you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him, And stand in awe of Him, all you descendants of Israel. For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; Nor has He hidden His face from him; But when he cried to Him for help, He heard. From You comes my praise in the great assembly; I shall pay my vows before those who fear Him. The afflicted will eat and be satisfied; Those who seek Him will praise the Lord. Let your heart live forever! All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, And all the families of the nations will worship before You. For the kingdom is the Lord’s And He rules over the nations. All the prosperous of the earth will eat and worship, All those who go down to the dust will bow before Him, Even he who cannot keep his soul alive. Posterity will serve Him; It will be told of the Lord to the coming generation. They will come and will declare His righteousness To a people who will be born, that He has performed it (vv. 22-31 NASB).

He does not despise the afflicted, but when we cried unto Him for help, He heard. 

May we never lose our wonder. 

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Praying the Psalms, Touring The Holy of Holies, Finding Your Song, and Bringing Back The Awe and Wonder

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Psalm 19: The Greatest Poem Ever Penned

I take this to be the greatest poem in the Psalter and one of the greatest lyrics in the world. C.S. Lewis

The Works and the Word of God. For the choir director. A Psalm of David.

The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands. (v.1)

I love nature. I love the sky; the splendor of the sunrise and sunset. Those who know me will tell you I am always watching the sky. I love the majesty of the moon and the glory of the stars. Summer storms hold my attention; my eyes to the skies for the likely funnel cloud. Thunderstorms are one of my favorite things. There is something about the sky that entices my mind—so this verse is one of my favorites. The poetry of this verse comes to mind often as I witness God’s glory displayed in the heavens. I can’t watch a thunderstorm or a sunset over the Rocky Mountains where I live, without the prose of this verse invading my thoughts. Elohim created the world in Wisdom and by His Power.

“The vast heavenly bodies orbiting with flawless precision in the skies are a clear manifestation of the infinite wisdom and power of the Creator.”[1]

It is He who made the earth by His power, Who established the world by His wisdom; And by His understanding He has stretched out the heavens (Jeremiah 10:12).

By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible (Heb. 11:3).

For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-- all things have been created through Him and for Him ( Col. 1:16).

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.  All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being (Jn. 1:1-3).

Day to day pours forth speech, And night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words; Their voice is not heard.  Their line has gone out through all the earth, And their utterances to the end of the world. In them He has placed a tent for the sun, Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber; It rejoices as a strong man to run his course.  Its rising is from one end of the heavens, And its circuit to the other end of them; And there is nothing hidden from its heat. (vv. 2-6).

Do the heavens have a voice? Can they speak? No, the heavens cannot communicate with man, but they do move man to speak and give praise to the One that created them.

“The heavens possess no means of verbal communication. Yet, the inner soul of man, through the perception of his spirit and intellect, can discern their message clearly.”[2]

There is an order to this universe; set by the only Wise God, and displayed in the heavens. Every day the sun will rise, and each evening it will find its home beyond the horizon; beckoning from slumber the other side of the planet that slept while we were awake. Night after night the sun will set and the moon will take its place; a constant display of the order of creation, and the Glory and Wisdom of God.  

God spoke and it was good.  He created the world by His Word; so David is able to make the correlation between the sun and the Torah. Its rising is from one end of the heavens, And its circuit to the other end of them; And there is nothing hidden from its heat (v.6). God’s Word will never pass away—you cannot hide from the truth of the Word:  

Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there.  If I take the wings of the dawn, If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, Even there Your hand will lead me, And Your right hand will lay hold of me. Psalm 139: 7-10 NASB

Suddenly, David shifts in his poetry from the celestial to the Torah. The shift seems so impulsive; almost like a misplaced metaphor. Further reflection reveals that David’s poetry is in sync; comparing the light and warmth of the sun to the Torah.

“The Torah plays the role of the sun itself within the present creation.”[3]

The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul; The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.  The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether. They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them Your servant is warned; In keeping them there is great reward. (vv. 7-11).

  The law of the Lord is perfect, and by living according to God’s law, the soul is restored. His precepts are perfect. I love David’s heart concerning God’s law. David prayed this before the New Testament; for the most part, the Law was the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible, which most people find arduous—David deemed life-giving. David considered the law to be food for the soul, worth more than gold, and like honey dripping from the mouth. He loved the law, and by living according to its precepts, understood its rewards. It is truth and it renders justice. The law makes the heart rejoice, and enlightens the eyes to God’s Wisdom. God longs to dwell in His people—we are the Mishkan Elohim—the Tabernacle of God. We are the temple the Holy Spirit.

“The notion of YHWH dwelling in the Temple has not been abandoned, but it is translated into the notion of his dwelling with his people—within his people, wherever they are—through their study and heartfelt practice of the Torah. Through that same Torah, his people discover not only that he can be their ‘refuge,’ the ‘place’ where they are at home, but that he will make his home with them, within them.”[4]

Now, David makes another shift into personal prayer. He prays for God to help him against the temptation of sin.

Who can discern his errors? Acquit me of hidden faults. Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous sins; Let them not rule over me; Then I will be blameless, And I shall be acquitted of great transgression. (vv. 12-13).

No matter how hard we try to live right, we all commit sins of ignorance. But if we confess our sins He is faithful to forgive us of our sins.

“One hardly needs to add that this poet is wholly free from self-righteousness and the last section is concerned with his ‘secret faults.’ As he felt the sun, perhaps in the desert, searching him out in every nook of shade where he attempted to hide from it, so he feels the Law searching out all the hiding-places of his soul.”[5]

Our best efforts to live perfectly prove grueling. Though we try to live according to God’s Word, who can be so careful that he never sins unintentionally? No matter how hard we try to live right, we all commit sins of ignorance.

David desires to live as close to God as he can. His heart longs to be righteous in His sight. He asks God to also keep him from presumptuous sins. We must never believe the lie that we do not sin, or become lax with “smaller” sins. The beloved disciple admonishes us, that if we say we don’t sin, we are liars and Gods truth is not in us.  We must remain humble before God knowing that we are all sinners in desperate need of a Savior.  

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer (v. 14).

God can read my thoughts and He knows my heart. He longs to fill our hearts, minds, and imaginations of His people with His glory. That is why it is vital to allow the Torah—God’s Word (Old and New Testaments) to wash us clean. The Lord implores us to meditate on the Word day and night. Not as a liturgical duty, but so that we may know Him deeper, and live a life that reflects Him, and live a life worthy of the calling of Christ.

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[1] “Psalm 19,” In Tehillim: The Book of Psalms, edited by Nosson Scherman and Meir Zlotowitz, 239, Vol.1 (Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 1995), 239.

[2] Ibid., 240.

[3] N.T. Wright, The Case For The Psalms: Why They Are Essential (New York: HarperOne, 2013), 105.

[4] Ibid., 107.

[5] C.S. Lewis, Reflections On The Psalms (New York: HBJ Publishers, 1958), 64.

Psalms To See Me Through: Psalm 17 Prayer for Protection Against Oppressors

A Prayer of David.

Hear a just cause, O Lord, give heed to my cry; Give ear to my prayer, which is not from deceitful lips. Let my judgment come forth from Your presence; Let Your eyes look with equity. You have tried my heart; You have visited me by night; You have tested me and You find nothing; I have purposed that my mouth will not transgress. vv. 1-3

You will have trials in this world; these encouraging Words of Jesus flood my thoughts when I read his prayer; I feel the desperation in David’s voice. I have felt this desperation recently; circumstances tend to leave us parched and feeling alone. God uses our parched, desperate, crying to draw us deeper in Him.  

God will visit us in the night and try our hearts; are we listening?

I was asleep but my heart was awake. A voice! My beloved was knocking: Open to me... Song of Songs 5:2 

The only way to contend our innocence, is if we are truly repentant for what He found there; He will find something. Once we confess it, allow the Blood to wash us, we are redeemed. Only then are we guiltless; Christ’s sacrifice makes it possible.

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 Jn. 1:9

People are fallen. How easy it is to fall from grace; none of us are immune. Because we live in a fallen world, we will have trials; people will betray us, let us down, and disappoint us—and we them. In the Tabernacle of Moses, the priest was required to wash—a picture of the washing of water with the Word (see Eph. 5:26). The priest looked into the Bronze Laver—the polished mirror of bronze, and washed. He saw only his reflection, not another’s. The bronze mirror was to judge one self and wash before performing any service before the Lord.  

As for the deeds of men, by the word of Your lips I have kept from the paths of the violent.
My steps have held fast to Your paths. My feet have not slipped. I have called upon You, for You will answer me, O God; Incline Your ear to me, hear my speech. vv. 4-6.

Stay on your path, no matter what others do or say. God will guide you and you will not slip—but wholeheartedly keep to the path God set you on.

Wondrously show Your lovingkindness, O Savior of those who take refuge at Your right hand
From those who rise up against them.  Keep me as the apple of the eye; Hide me in the shadow of Your wings from the wicked who despoil me, My deadly enemies who surround me. They have closed their unfeeling heart, with their mouth they speak proudly. They have now surrounded us in our steps; They set their eyes to cast us down to the ground. He is like a lion that is eager to tear, And as a young lion lurking in hiding places. vv. 7-12

Often, we expect God to deliver us from the situation instead of seeking wisdom in the situation. God may be using the hard place to teach things to us and to reveal things about ourselves. David learned this each time he faced an enemy. Our expectations in a situation are usually different than what the Lord has planned; how many times have we heard, Sometimes God calms the storm, sometimes He calms us in the midst of the storm? God is our Refuge and Strong Tower, and we can run to Him and be safe (see Prov. 18:10).

And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. Rom. 5:3-4

Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. James 1: 2-4

This scribe battles this often—some circumstances prove too challenging, and it takes all the strength I can muster to look beyond them to the Lord. Peter, after taking his step of faith to walk the lake’s surface, sank only when he took his eyes off Jesus and focused on the wave. It only took him under because his focus was turned; the enemy distracted him.

The Lord gives us the assurance that He will help us through the trial, all we have to do is ask. He hides us in the shadow of His wings. He will keep us. James continues his admonition on tribulations with the key to making it through the hard times;

 But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.  But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. James 1:5-8

Peter learned this in his leap onto the lake. God will give us wisdom for every situation if we ask. If however, we allow the circumstances to toss us to and fro, and keep us from seeking God, we can’t receive that wisdom, and we go around the mountain again; the trial overwhelms us, and we receive nothing.

 Arise, O Lord, confront him, bring him low; Deliver my soul from the wicked with Your sword, from men with Your hand, O Lord, from men of the world, whose portion is in this life, And whose belly You fill with Your treasure; They are satisfied with children, And leave their abundance to their babes. vv. 13-14

God will fight our enemies; He assures us time and again in Scripture. He will keep us; the wicked are concerned only with the things this world has to offer, and are subject to the world’s systems and processes. But we are to have a Kingdom perspective. Everything you are going through is to enhance the Kingdom of God, and to know God deeper. He wants to know us and have an intimate relationship with His people. And after the tribulation is over, and we have wrestled with God, we may leave with a limp (see Genesis 32:22-32), but we will have a new name and a deeper relationship with God. When you awake you will say to the Lord—

As for me, I shall behold Your face in righteousness; I will be satisfied with Your likeness when I awake. v.15

Psalms To See Me Through Psalm 15: Description of a Citizen of Zion

A Psalm of David.

Zion is the ancient name for Jerusalem, and appears over 150 times in the Old Testament alone. Mt. Zion was the City of David and the city that housed the Tabernacle of David. Zion is where the Lord dwells; it is a place of strength and joy. Zion is where God is praised and where His beauty shines forth. In Zion God’s Name is declared and it is where He reigns. We are citizens of this city.

O Lord, who may abide in Your tent? Who may dwell on Your holy hill? He who walks with integrity, and works righteousness, And speaks truth in his heart. vv. 1-2.

God’s tent is where His glory shines forth. The Tabernacle of David housed only the Ark of the Covenant which was the glory of God, but with it came a new order of worship. Worship is not only singing, but the way we live. Our obedience is worship. You cannot abide in God’s presence if you are not righteous. We are righteous because of the shed blood of Christ, and because of His sacrifice the precepts of God are now upon our hearts:  

For when Gentiles who do not have the Law do instinctively the things of the Law, these, not having the Law, are a law to themselves. Rom. 2:14 NASB

He does not slander with his tongue, Nor does evil to his neighbor, Nor takes up a reproach against his friend; In whose eyes a reprobate is despised, But who honors those who fear the Lord; He swears to his own hurt and does not change; He does not put out his money at interest, Nor does he take a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things will never be shaken. vv. 3-5.

These verses breathe the Decalogue in every word. The Ten Commandments are not just a set of binding laws, but a way of life for citizens of Zion; you and me. God desires to dwell with His people; one main purpose for the Tabernacleof Moses and the Tabernacle of David was so that God may dwell with His people.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it…And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.

John 1: 1-5, 14 NASB

Jerusalem is the holy city and Zion is God’s holy mountain, the place God ordained that His Name should dwell. Zion represents worship; it is God’s mountain. Zion is a fortress, and a symbol of His rule, kingship, and worship. As citizens of the Lord’s city, He expects us to live according to His Word. He has poured out His Grace to strengthen and empower us to live for Him. Let’s live as though we citizens of Zion—God’s city.