May 7 ~ tammi

Today's passages from the One-Year Bible Chronological Reading Plan are Psalm 12-17 and 19-21.

Summary and thorough explanation of each and every Psalm would make this post entirely too long (if I was even in any way an exegete, which I am not!), but I wanted to draw your attention to Psalm 19, which has become a favourite of mine over the last couple of years.

I guess because so many times when I'm out walking on my mile road admiring my surroundings (even in the dead of winter!), I find myself so often asking, "How can people think there is no God?" I think that's what David's talking about in the first 6 verses.

Hampton Keathley IV says, in his examination of this passage, "Notice how... this is present tense for us. Special revelation, Scripture, has ceased, but the natural revelation continues. We can receive natural revelation fresh, daily." How great is that?! This totally explains how I can feel like God made today's spectacular sunrise or arranged the clouds and the colours of sky just right at sunset ALL FOR ME, even though I know there are potentially thousands of people right here in my little valley feeling exactly the same way! God is so great!

Then David suddenly switches gears and starts talking about God's law and it seems like a complete change of subject. He spends 6 verses talking about the marvels of creation and how they reflect God's glory, only two verses on the law of God, and then the next four verses are the response to God's law. Why, if there are only two verses about God's special revelation, is David's response to this rather than the six verses prior where he talked about God's natural revelation?

Keathley explains there's good reason for this: "I think that is because natural revelation is designed to bring you to the recognition of the need for special revelation. Special revelation is more important. It is where our focus should be. We should look at the rest of the world through the lens of Scripture.

David recognizes that God's word is good for him. It is more desirable than gold because gold does not satisfy. You always think you need a little more. But through Scripture we can know God and have relationship with Him and that does satisfy."

So what are the reasons we should use Scripture, God's special revelation to us, as a filter for viewing everything in our lives? Because it warns us ~ of our inherent evil, of the coming condemnation and destination if we remain apart from God, of specific temptations and sins, of our obligations as followers of Christ.

And because obeying Scripture brings great reward. There is peace in obedience ~ no guilty conscience. There is benefit to your soul. There is increased knowledge, wisdom, and discernment. And there is reward in heaven.

David ends this Psalm with a request that God acquit him of his hidden faults ~ the sins he didn't realize he'd committed ~ and to be kept from presumptious sins, those he knew full well were sins even though no one saw them or were even affected by them.

So there are three main points this Psalm seems to be making are:

1. That appreciation for God's creation should lead us to praise Him;
2. That we can learn truth outside of Scripture through observation of creation, but that we must constantly be filtering everything we take in through the lens of God's Holy Word;
3. And that Scripture reveals our weaknesses and God's glory, which should contantly prompt both praise and petition.

What are we seeing in our surroundings today? How are we looking at it and what is our response?



Tomorrow's passages: Psalm 22-26