Sunday 19th
Psalm 103
Yesterday we looked at a verse from Psalm 91, today and through this week I want to continue in the Psalms. I wonder if you were limited to choosing seven Psalms which ones would you choose? Perhaps that would be a good exercise today, to compile your personal list. I have chosen seven for this week, but I have not particularly chosen what would be my top seven simply because my list would include at least three that we won’t use this week. My list would include Psalm 1, has it’s always been one of my favourites, and Psalm 121 and Psalm 19.
Today I have chosen Psalm 103, verses 1-5.
These first few verses in this psalm are probably verses that I quote or use more than any other in prayer, especially verse 1, verses 1-5, ‘Bless the LORD, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.’
Just pause for a moment or two and consider the wonder of these words.
‘Forget not all his benefits’ if I were to give a New Testament comparison, it would be Ephesians 1:3 ‘Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places’ I have already mentioned about listing what would be your top seven Psalms, here is a bigger challenge, how about beginning to list the many benefits or blessings we have received in Christ.
In Psalm 139:17, David says ‘How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them.’ He then continues in the next verse, ‘IF I could count them, they are more than the sand!’ In an earlier Psalm he says, ‘You have multiplied, O LORD my God, your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us; none can compare with you!’ (Psalm 40:5) If David could say these things before Calvary has happened, how much more so can we who have known the wonder of Calvary’s love and grace. His blessings towards us are like his thoughts toward us, they are more than the sand.
‘Who forgives all your iniquity’ read what it says later in the same Psalm, verse 12, ‘as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.’ Re-read this and declare it loud and clear, if we have been to the cross in repentance, our sin HAS been removed and we have been justified by his precious blood! The devil can throw every accusation against us that he wants to, but not one accusation will stand as we remain firm in our position in Christ Jesus, because we have been forgiven and we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus himself, who is standing in God’s presence on our behalf. 1 John 1:9 ‘If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.’
‘Who heals all your diseases’ ‘Oh dear’ this is a tricky one, if he heals all our diseases how come so many of the household of faith are sick and suffering? Well, no it’s not tricky for God does have the power to heal all our diseases – he has healed us from the worse of them all – the disease of sin which had left us spiritually dead and thanks to his death on the cross and the power of his resurrection, by grace we have been saved and we have been made spiritually alive again. (Ephesians 2) But alongside reading Scripture concerning healing we need to remind ourselves that although we have been made alive spiritually or quickened as the KJV says, we are still living in a fallen world, and we still suffer some of the consequences of the fall, as Paul puts it in 2 Corinthians 4:16 ‘So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.’ But thank God one of the blessing of being in Christ is that one day that which is wasting away, perishing, and decaying will be transformed into a glorious new eternal body. Another Scripture that should help us in this is Romans 8:23-25 ‘And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first-fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. (See also 1 Corinthians 15:42-49) And although healing can and does take place in the present, the day is coming when all sickness and disease will be done away with – and as a result of what? – Christ’s redemptive work, and so he does heal all our diseases, sometimes it happens in the present but most definitely for every believer it will happen as we enter eternity. As I have said in an earlier devotion, (March 28th) if our healing doesn’t happen today, he gives us his grace to strengthen us in the present and as a sure and certain hope for the future.
‘Who redeems your life from the pit’ In the CSB* the word pit is capitalized to Pit, this then means it is referring to a specific place. It is referring to ‘Sheol’, the place of the dead, or the place where the dead go to. The psalmist is rejoicing that because of his hope and confidence in God, when he dies, he will not go to the place of the spiritually dead, because he has been redeemed from it. So where will he go? Well instead of the Pit those who are spiritually alive will go to Paradise! Remember what the response of Jesus was to the dying thief on the cross? ‘Today you will be with me in Paradise’ In other words instead of the PIT and as a result of Christ’s resurrection, we go to where the Saviour is and perhaps better to put it this way, we go into the PRESENCE of our Saviour. And we who are born again by the Spirit of God have been redeemed from the pit, from the place of the spiritually dead. For the unbeliever the Pit is not good news, because the New Testament enlarges further and talks of the unrighteous dead being raised and cast with the devil and his wicked angels into the Lake of Fire which will be a place of eternal punishment,(Revelation 20:7-15) but for us who are believers, our body may be temporarily placed in the ground, but our redeemed spirit / soul will enter into his presence awaiting the glorious resurrection day. (1 Corinthians 15:50-58)
‘Who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s’. Because of time I will sum these thought up by using Scripture, just ponder upon the wonder that instead of a golden crown studded with diamond on our heads, we have been crowned with something far more precious and valuable – the steadfast love and mercy of God.
Psalm 5:11-12 ‘But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them ever sing for joy, and spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may exult in you. For you bless the righteous, O LORD; you cover him with favour as with a shield.’
Psalm 107:8-9 ‘Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man! For he satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul he fills with good things.’
Matthew 5:6 ‘Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.’
Isaiah 40:30-31 ‘Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.’
Oh yes, my list which we will look at the rest of this week – Psalm 8, Psalm 23, Psalm 42, Psalm 100, Psalm 123, Psalm 34.
*CSB Christian Standard Bible
Lately I’ve been looking back, along this winding road
To the old familiar markers of the mercies I have known
I know it may sound simple but it’s more than a cliche
There’s no better way to tell you, than to say
God’s been good in my life
I feel blessed beyond my wildest dreams when I go to sleep each night
And though I’ve had my share of hard times, I wouldn’t change them if I could
‘Cause through it all, God’s been good
Times replay and I can see that I’ve cried some bitter tears
But I felt His arms around me, as I faced my greatest fears
You see I’ve had more gains than losses and I’ve known more joy than hurt
As His grace rolled down upon me undeserved
For God has been my Father, my Savior and my Friend
His love was my beginning, and His love will be my end
I could spend forever trying to tell you everything He is
But the best thing I can say is this . . . God’s been good . . .’
Unknown CCLI 788682