Each morning I sit here and I have a pretty good idea what I will write about Jesus. Not yet today. It is not that I have not seen things that make me think of Jesus. But I’m distracted and the clarity of the Psalm has not yet struck me. Maybe you can help? I’m of two minds.
Firstly I see Jesus, in David. That is the man seeking God. And we see the conversation between Jesus and His Father several times in the gospels as well as teaching about the relationship between Father and Son in the rest of the New Testament. Yesterday I was looking at and thinking about Jesus' prayer in John 17 and I could probably see links between that prayer and this prayer of David in Psalm 86.
Then there is the way of seeing the Psalm as Jesus being the God David seeks. Jesus reveals to us that He has all the character qualities that David in this Psalm attributes to God.
And then as I was rereading the Psalm maybe for the 5th or more time, verse 15 hit me and I started to look at cross references based on Psalm 86:15. I found in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge online this verse in John:
“For the law was given through Moses, but God’s unfailing love and faithfulness came through Jesus Christ.”
John 1:17 NLT
“Moses gave us the Law, but Jesus, the Anointed One, unveils truth wrapped in tender mercy.”
John 1:17 The Passion Translation (TPT)
See yesterday I was chatting with Martijn, a young single volunteer in our store from the Netherlands. Martijn had been an ETF student and he often has the opportunity to preach in churches. This coming Sunday Martijn will be preaching about the church from the Lord’s prayer, and he is making a link to Jesus' prayer in John 17. What is interesting is that earlier this year a young person had asked me to help give an explanation of our faith in the existence of God to a person who was more in the direction of atheist or agnostic. I wrote an answer and then asked various people to check my answer. Martijn was one of those people who checked it and had a comment. Basically Martijn noticed I used logic and thinking to get to an understanding of God, but he reminded me that God used Jesus as His proof. I had unfortunately said little in what I wrote directly about Jesus. I had been trying to avoid certain discussions or objections but staying with what I believed to be steps in logic. I had failed to offer the strongest apologetic there is and the one God most mightily uses, namely Jesus. Now if you know anything about me it is that I have made Jesus my main theme for nearly 40 years. So that I had not given an unashamed and powerful answer presenting Jesus brought shame to my heart. I purposed to double down, lay aside all other apologetic arguments and go full bore in the theme that thrills my soul, Jesus. So even this trek through the Psalms is in a very real way motivated by Martijn’s gentle but firm correction and rebuke for missing the main proof of God’s existence and work. Jesus.
So yesterday Martijn said that the idea that grace and truth, which we saw so strongly in Psalm 85, was combined and mentioned so beautifully pointed to Jesus. Well you don’t have to tell me twice. I am looking for Jesus in everything. In every flower, every cloud, every person and situation and definitely in every scripture. And today it was not that I could not see Jesus but that I didn’t clearly see which aspect of Jesus I should haul out to discuss. But then verse 15 stood out.
“But Lord, your nurturing love is tender and gentle. You are slow to get angry yet so swift to show your faithful love. You are full of abounding grace and truth.”
Psalms 86:15 The Passion Translation (TPT)
“But you, O Lord, are a God of compassion and mercy, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.”
Psalms 86:15 New Living Translation (NLT)
MAIN POINT: You will only find grace and truth in Jesus.
Jesus hears our prayers. v.1
Jesus protects His own. v.2
Jesus is merciful. v.3
Jesus fills us with joy. v.4
Jesus wants to forgive the sinner. v.5
Jesus is listening to us. v.6
Jesus answers us. v.7
Jesus is unlike any pagan God. v.8
Jesus will be worshipped by all nations. v.9
Jesus is God. v.10
Jesus teaches us how to live in truth because He is truth. v.11
Jesus has the name, authority and worth to be praised. v.12
Jesus loves us. v.13
Jesus was attacked by a religious gang of murderers. v.14
Jesus is the source of grace and truth. v.15
Jesus is merciful to His servants. v.16
Jesus helps and comforts us. v.17
Conclusion:
Jesus is God’s greatest proof of who He is and what He does.
Can you supply an example or verse where you can find Jesus saying or showing these statements above? That is your assignment. Find the places where Jesus is the God of Psalm 86.
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