“Praise the LORD! Oh give thanks to the LORD, for He is good, for His steadfast love endures forever! Who can utter the mighty deeds of the LORD, or declare all His praise? Blessed are they who observe justice, who do righteousness at all times! Remember me, O LORD, when You show favor to Your people; help me when You save them, that I may look upon the prosperity of Your chosen ones, that I may rejoice in the gladness of Your nation, that I may glory with Your inheritance.” Psalm 106:1-5
Devotional Thought For The Day
This psalm follows up on the previous psalm, especially the final verse of that psalm which states one of the important purposes of God’s establishment of Israel: “that they might keep His statutes and observe His laws.” [Ps. 105:45] Sadly, the psalmist is not able to glory in the obedience of the children of Israel or dwell upon their faithfulness to God. Instead, much of this psalm describes the actual history of Israel, during the Exodus and beyond, recalling how the people of God over and over again responded to His wondrous acts of kindness, love, deliverance, and salvation with unbelief, rebellion, and rejection of His Word. It will be our task in considering this psalm to contemplate how this history is repeated in our own lives, to think about our own unfaithfulness in response to the wondrous love and kindness of God, and His continuing faithfulness and love for us.
Before the psalmist leads us into such disturbing contemplation, He first reminds us again of the goodness, kindness, and steadfast love of God. Before anyone can properly serve God by keeping His statutes and observing His laws, one must be filled with wonder and awe at God, His great love, and His mighty deeds of deliverance and salvation and blessing. The only proper service to God [and honoring of God] is carried out in deep humility and gratitude to God for His favor, His love, and His blessings, especially His free gift of forgiveness, life, and salvation in the Lord Jesus Christ, His beloved Son. All other religion and religious service, even if purportedly directed to God, the only True and Living God, and even if outwardly conforming to His Word, is abominable and idolatrous. It is an impenitent confession of absurd and false faith in man’s goodness and self-determination, a rejection of the condemnation of God’s law and a refusal of His gift of salvation. It negates giving thanks and praise to God and exulting in His love; it instead hypocritically exalts and praises man.
Even when the psalmist meditates upon the travesty of fallen human beings, and urges people both to remember God’s goodness and love and to grow in commitment to “justice and righteousness,” he continues to humbly place himself under the gracious mercy and love of God. He prays for himself: “Remember me, O LORD, when You show favor to Your people; help me when You save them, that I may look upon the prosperity of Your chosen ones, that I may rejoice in the gladness of Your nation, that I may glory with Your inheritance.” At no time may we remove ourselves from the need for God’s favor and saving, or distance ourselves from the “communion of saints,” the community of God’s people. Interestingly, he prays that he might be able to “rejoice in the gladness of Your nation,” and to “glory with Your inheritance.” He prays this even as he prepares to describe in brutal detail the horrid and sinful history of these people. This is the point of Jesus’ parable of the prodigal sons [Luke 15:11-32] – the elder son, in view of his brother’s wretched and abhorrent behavior, refused to enter his father’s house to celebrate the repentance and full restoration of his brother. We should learn from the psalmist’s continued love for and dedication to the people of God, in spite of the wretchedness that we also see. We can remain loving and caring only when we are keenly aware of the wretchedness of our own sin and the wondrous grace and mercy of God.
And that is the truly interesting thing about the psalmist’s musings. He asserts that God is going to be showing favor to His people and saving them, and that He will provide them with prosperity and gladness, and that they will remain His nation and His inheritance, in spite of their sin and rebellion. As he recounts the wretched and abominable behaviors of the children of Israel, he constantly returns to God’s gracious and patient mercy and love, and urges God’s people to repentance and faith. This is the center of faith and proper relationship with God, His gracious, steadfast, and eternal love. And this also is the power that moves people ultimately to forsake wickedness and to commit themselves to justice and righteousness, to keeping His statutes and observing [obeying] His laws – so that His people may give powerful and winsome witness to the true nature of God, His goodness and love. This, so that others may come to repentance and faith, salvation and newness of life. This is the context of the observations and teachings of this psalm, this Word of God. It will be an insightful journey to look closely and carefully at what God caused to be written for our learning.
Prayer For The Day
Dear Lord Jesus, continue to teach us by Your Word. Enable us to come to greater repentance by the light of Your Word, and to greater faith and confidence in Your redeeming love by the brilliant assurances of Your steadfast faithfulness to us. Humble us to greater repentance and increase our faith, that we be weaned from the loves and yearnings of our sinful nature to the practice of justice and righteousness, the exercise of true and genuine love for You and others. Amen.