Need a boost? Then this is the Psalm for you. Oh not a sugar-coated, lying boost of falsehoods but a real-life emotional rollercoaster of a relationship that shows how much of a hero God is for His people and an invitation for you to join. In fact the Psalm starts and ends with the opportunity to Praise the Lord. And not just randomly but with reasons, because God is good. Good? you may ask, and the author says Yes, of course good--look, His faithful love endures forever. And we all know forever is a really long time. You’ll need forever, though, because you have been challenged to make a list of all of God’s glorious miracles and of course, that will take you forever. So get on with it. Make your list. I have made such a list and found indeed I didn’t have enough time or paper to complete it. The glorious miracles of God are more than we can count. You can start with a couple of personal miracles. Look in the mirror and ask yourself, are you like God:
Do you have joy?
Do you deal justly with others?
Do you always do what is right?
There it is. The last one definitely catches all of us out except for God. We do not always do what is right. So verses 4-7 fly in at the heels of such a realisation and begin to beg for mercy and confess the shortfall. Now I reckon confession is good for the soul, but so is the recognition that God is a God who saves those who don’t deserve it verse 8.
“Even so, he saved them— to defend the honor of his name and to demonstrate his mighty power.”
“45 He remembered his covenant with them and relented because of his unfailing love. 46 He even caused their captors to treat them with kindness.”
To be quite honest this is an emotional Psalm. There is anger, rebellion, foolishness, forgetfulness, refusesal, rescuing, redeeming, scattering and gathering, shedding of blood and far more. You might think that isn’t a recipe for joy and praise. But indeed it is. This is real life, this is what we are faced with in our hearts, in our families, and in the news daily. For my whole 40+ years of knowing Jesus I have never failed to see a world, a family or a person who wasn’t embroiled in some way in this emotional rollercoaster of people not doing what is right all the time, like we should according to verse 3. But I have seen grace and mercy and hope over and over again.
Yesterday I was trying to explain redemption in Dutch to my friend Kimberley while we enjoyed a beautiful walk in the Heverlee Bos. I think redemption is the main theme of this Psalm. Redemption is a rich word with all these ideas attached:
to buy back.
to give value to.
to restore to its right function and purpose.
Sometimes people mistakenly assume that Jesus is all about love and forgiveness and the God of the Old Testament is a God of anger and judgement. I have heard folks say that the God of the Old Testament isn’t like the grace, love and forgiveness of Jesus.
Psalm 106 shows us that isn’t the truth. God is gracious, merciful and kind throughout all the Bible. He is the same. He never changes.
The Psalmist’s confession in verse 7 is a template that Paul uses in Romans chapter 1 to explain the path of sin that makes us lose all hope and joy and our connection to God and His salvation.
That path begins with not being impressed with God’s wonderful deeds. If we listen to the mockers and the people complaining against God, then we become influenced to diminish the wonderful deeds of God or in fact to say that God’s wonderful deeds are not wonderful at all. Some go so far as to judge God’s wonderful deeds and declare that God is terrible. So firstly listen, know and agree with God: His deeds are wonderful. Then they forget God's kindness. The list of God’s kindnesses is long. His kindness is praiseworthy. Have you already forgotten how He rescued you? My God has time and time again rescued me from addiction, depression, unfaithfulness, unbelief, lust, pride and laziness. Oh I have done such terrible things, but God is good and faithful and He saves. He has saved many I love. And He is still saving many I love. He uses all means to rescue people. I will not forget. I will remember the faithful lovingkindness of God.
And they rebelled. They took action against God. How foolish to think we can win in a fight against God. How utterly worthless to think we can live, breath, work, create, or enjoy life when we pursue death and reject the God who gives us our life. Who can win in a fight against God? No one. But God doesn’t respond like we would. The God of Psalm 106:8 is the same Jesus that says Father, forgive them while He is being killed on the cross by His enemies.
What are you chasing? What do you think will make you happy? What do you lack and pursue? Is it a grass-eating cow in comparison to a life-giving God?
“They traded their glorious God
for a statue of a grass-eating bull.”
Admit it, you have been just as dumb. I have for sure. I admit it. I confess I have substituted God’s glory for all kinds of stupid stuff. But God is forgiving, merciful and kind. Even in His anger and judgement, He is drawing us to Himself. He is helping us get back to being rightly impressed, to remember, to be thankful and to be full of praise. Because that is where we will find joy. God is not giving up on us. He is persistent in His love and promise.
“43 Again and again he rescued them,
but they chose to rebel against him,
and they were finally destroyed by their sin.
44 Even so, he pitied them in their distress
and listened to their cries.
45 He remembered his covenant with them
and relented because of his unfailing love.”
How can we not be moved by this truth? And we see this in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, God’s seriousness in showing His loving kindness. If you need help making the links I have referred to contact me. Or even better yet read your Bible and pray. I know the Spirit of God will lead you to the same conclusions that Jesus is the God of Psalm 106 who is full of rescue, pity, promises and unfailing love.
“For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”
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| Handwritten Psalm 106 |
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