Taking the Long View: Psalm 42
In the aftermath of Korah’s rebellion, very few would have believed that one day their family would be appointed to lead worship for all of God’s people.
In the aftermath of Korah’s rebellion, very few would have believed that one day their family would be appointed to lead worship for all of God’s people.
When we affirm the substitutionary atonement (i.e., that Jesus died in our place), we also understand that this was only possible because he had lived in our place.
This beautiful hardback book is a collection of thoughts on each of the psalms by Timothy and Julie Tennent. While no single meditation could even begin to exhaust the meaning and insight of any given psalm, these particular meditations are the result of many prayerful conversations about each of these psalms that have arisen from a daily practice of psalm singing over the years. These meditations are not intended to be a formal commentary on the Psalms, however it may surely serve as a guide for anyone who wants to engage the Psalms in a deeper way.
We can hear the voice of the Good Shepherd even under the clamoring din of the voices of unbelief and skepticism that surround us.
The righteous will find in the end that the afflicted will be heard, the fatherless and the oppressed will be comforted, and today’s terror will be replaced by the joy of his divine presence.
Sometimes praying for divine intervention means that our answers will have painful, but redemptive goals.
Sometimes God delivers us in dramatic, immediate ways. Other times, God’s work unfolds slowly over time, and only in looking back can we fully capture the slow work of God in our lives.
As David longed for the day when a temple would stand in Jerusalem and God’s presence would fill the holy of holies, so we long for the day when we will be in the full presence of God.
Holiness is fundamentally about the presence of God being restored into our lives, our other relationships and, indeed, in the world.
This season between the two comings of Jesus is the time for vibrant mission.
David was a man after God’s own heart; Jesus is the very heart of God Himself. Jesus is the perfect embodiment of the righteous rule and reign of God.
In the incarnation, God turns the tables on the world and sets into motion the great reversal.