Have you ever wanted something so badly and it never came around? Have you ever had an adversary? Are you currently facing an adversary? Have you ever been assailed by an evil doer? Have you ever had an enemy encamp against you? (And no I'm not talking about a rival Christian School basketball team)
The answer for all of us is yes!
In this praise song we find hope in the God of Salvation, a shelter, a rock, a fortress.
The salvation we find in our God hinges on verse four:
One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple. Psalm 27:4
When I'm faced with worry, when my plan is crashing and burning, when I feel like God doesn't care... I go to this verse.
It's this simple. Asking for other things ends. Hoping God would change what He's doing and conform to our plan ends. Thinking about what other weak dependent humans will say or do ends. Focusing on what the creator and loving sustainer of the universe has done and will do begins.
An OT person couldn't mention the Temple, the house of the LORD, without thinking of the atonement. Today when we gaze on the beauty of the LORD we think of our atonement in the blood and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Anything we seek above Jesus Christ will ultimately lead to pain and frustration. In trails, go back to asking God one thing: to see Him.
For he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble; he will conceal me under the cover of his tent; he will lift me high upon a rock. And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around me. and I will offer in his tent sacrifices with shouts of joy; I will sing and make melody to the Lord. Psalm 27:5, 6
I think this passage helps shed new light on our discussion of reward from Tuesday. When David petitions God, his request is that he be allowed to spend time in His presence. All good things come from God (James 1:17), and David seems to understand the importance of seeking the Creator instead of becoming fixated on the creations (something I thought Alcorn glossed over in the excerpt posted on Tuesday).
ReplyDeleteThere is much we can learn from the heart's desire of a man after God's own heart.