07/24/2023
This morning I am reading Psalm 84. This is a love poem/song, and the language is incredible. There is no doubt of the psalmist' love for God as he begins by writing of his longing to be in the presence of God. Do we follow Jesus simply so that we will receive the reward of eternal life? Do we serve Him for some blessing He might bestow on us? Do we fear God because we will be judged unworthy and thrown in a pit of fire? If our answer to any of these questions is yes, then our faith is an illusion, and God’s love for us is truly undeserved.
“How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts! My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of the Lord; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God. Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, at your altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God.”
Psalms 84:1-3 ESV
In the poetic verse of this psalm the psalmist tells us of his longing for God, but he also gives us the reason why we should follow and serve our Lord... it isn't duty, or out of fear of Him, but because of a deep love that overshadows everything else in our lives.
“For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness. For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly. O Lord of hosts, blessed is the one who trusts in you!”
Psalms 84:10-12 ESV
God gives many blessings and a fullness of life to us, but only to those who walk upright; to those who trust and serve Him out of a deep and abiding love for Him… not for reward. The blessing isn’t in receiving a thing, but in being in the presence of God, and this alone should be what draws the songs of love from within us, and brings strength to our faith in Him.
“Blessed are those who dwell in your house, ever singing your praise! Selah Blessed are those whose strength is in you, in whose heart are the highways to Zion. As they go through the Valley of Baca they make it a place of springs; the early rain also covers it with pools. They go from strength to strength; each one appears before God in Zion.”
Psalms 84:4-7 ESV
Our lives as Christians shouldn't be about the tedium, it shouldn’t be about doing Gods bidding or following Jesus out of fear, nor for a reward we might receive, but because our love for God is overpowering and leaves us with no other course. If we give only to receive, then what is the power in our giving? Where is the blessing in those things we believe we have earned?
Stories of love abound in literature and they can help us understand in human terms and actions how the strength of man’s romantic love raises him up, but they can also show us how that love can cause us to do not only great things, but sometimes amazingly foolish things. Love is a powerful emotion that is a gift when exercised in accordance with God's will, but a curse if misdirected or self-serving, and it can lead to our downfall.
But, in this Psalm the love is not a romantic love but rather agape love, or the love of God for man, and man for God. This is an intense love that wells up from within our very soul for God. In this love of man for God, there is no misdirection, nor is there any unrequited characteristic to it. God loves us more than we can possibly love him. We were made to love and be loved. If there is any doubt of this, we need only read a single verse in Zephaniah in order to see that God blesses us because He loves us, and He does so with the same blessings called out in verses 4-7 of our Psalm today. So in Zephaniah we read...
“The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.”
Zephaniah 3:17 ESV
So how do we love God? In what way is our love demonstrated for Jesus? Do we love with an agape love, or with some lesser love as we seek the gifts we might receive in return for doing so? Is our motivation blessing, or in being a blessing? Gifts of love should have no strings attached. They come as blessings because they are manifestations of the true love we are giving, and not the love of gifts we have received, or that we hope to one day receive. God blesses us because He loves us... not as a reward. So, how is it that we bless Him?
Prayer:
Thank you Father for your love, and for allowing us to love you with all our hearts and souls. We sing out to you, unable to control the outpouring of our spirits, and we give ourselves to you because that is the greatest gift we can offer you. You are our God, our Lord, our Savior, and in you we find all the joy and fulfillment we desire. Holy Father, we thank you for calling our names, and allowing us to call out yours. In your presence we are completed, and in you we find no shortcoming, you are the perfection that beckons us to your side, and your love for us purifies even our darkest sins. You are our shield, our Messiah, and in you there is protection, salvation, and redemption; in you we rest because there is peace in your love, and calm in your courts.
“O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer; give ear, O God of Jacob! Selah Behold our shield, O God; look on the face of your anointed! For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness. For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly. O LORD of hosts, blessed is the one who trusts in you!”
Psalm 84:8-12 ESV
Rich Forbes