Today, I am reading and commenting on  Psalms 117-118.

The main theme in today’s psalms is that God’s love endures forever for which we should thank and praise Him.  He tells us that if we fear the Lord we will know that His love endures forever.  Therefore we will not be afraid, because if He is with us, what can any mortal, or collection of mortals, do to us?  Of course, that is easier said than done.  Which is why reading these psalms is so important.  They remind us to take refuge in Him rather than put our trust in humans, or human institutions.  As part of that theme the psalmist tells us something of which we often miss the significance:
“The stone the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone;”
We know that Jesus quotes this as a prophecy about Himself, but even so we miss the significance of what the psalmist said here.  The builders, the experts, rejected the stone which the Architect had chosen as that which the entire building would be built around.  Those whom we, in our human wisdom, look at as the most knowledgeable to accomplish the task seek to make the world a better place they reject what God has chosen as the starting place.  So, don’t put your trust in your friends, in the government, in those trained to do the job, or any other mortal, instead put your trust in God.  He has a plan.  Listen to Him and start where He tells you to start.  We will not be able to save ourselves.  We will not be successful on our own.  God alone can save us.  God alone can bring us to success.  Praise His name because His love endures forever.

Above I compared the “builders” to the “experts”, but as I thought about it a little more I realized that WE are the builders.  Let us be careful not to reject God’s cornerstone in His plans for us.  Yes, the ultimate cornerstone is Jesus Christ, but sometimes God has given us cornerstones for lesser buildings.  Do not let yourself reject those either.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Psalms 117-118.

I am struggling with a lot of stress in my life right now.  So, today’s two psalms really lifted my spirits.  I am not quite sure how to express why that is the case, but part of it comes from reading them as if the break between the psalms came after Psalm 118:1, rather than before:
Praise the Lord, all you nations;
    extol him, all you peoples.
 For great is his love toward us,
    and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.
Praise the Lord.
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
    his love endures forever.
Let everyone praise the Lord. let everyone from every nation praise Him because of His great love for us, and let us thank Him because He is good.  The psalmist then goes on in 118 to tell us that when he cried to the Lord, the Lord brought him into a good space.  He reminds us that when the Lord is with us we should not fear, because who, or what, can threaten us when the Lord defends us?  It is better to put our trust in the Lord than in any human being, even if they are a powerful government official.  We may be surrounded on all sides by trouble, but if we trust in the Lord we will cut through those troubles with ease.  Even though I see no way through the troubles around me, I know that I will soon be able to proclaim what the Lord has done to take those troubles from me.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Psalms 117-118.

One of the recurring themes throughout Psalms is that God’s love endures forever.  The psalmist begins by telling us that God loves us, and that the “us” to which he is referring encompasses all people.  Rather than trust in people, even those with great wealth and power, put your trust in God.  If God is with you, what can any mortal, or group of mortals, do to you?  And if you fear the Lord, He will be with you.  Every time I write about fear of the Lord, I think about what that means.  If we fear the Lord, we will do as He commands because we fear making Him angry, and we fear disappointing Him.  As a child, and even as a young man, I feared disappointing my parents.  That fear kept me from many acts which would have destroyed my life.  In the same way, I fear disappointing God…although I know that I have and do.  Yet, that fear of disappointing God inspires me to strive to change.  More importantly, it inspires me to allow Him to change me.  I fear the Lord, therefore I need fear no one and nothing else.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Psalms 117-118.

God’s love endures forever.  Which means that we need not fear anyone, or anything, except for God Himself.  Our enemies may surround us, our problems may seem insurmountable, but, if God is with us, our enemies will fall and our problems will be resolved.  Put your faith in God and you will see Him do mighty things.  I read these psalms and they remind me to put my trust in God, to do the things which He has told me to do.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Psalms 117-118.

The psalmist tells us to praise the Lord because His love and faithfulness endure forever.  Put your trust in the Lord and you need fear nothing.  If you truly have faith that God loves and cares for you, you will act as He directs and fear nothing and no one.  If God is with you, who or what can possibly harm you?  Relying on God is better than relying on any person.  When he was hard pressed, the psalmist cried out to God and God delivered him.  He did not passively wait for God to act, he fought against the difficulties he faced.  Yet, he acknowledged that it was not his actions which delivered him.  Instead, the psalmist credited God with his salvation from his foes.  Let us act similarly.  Trusting in God does not mean passively waiting for God’s deliverance, but it also does not mean thinking that our actions will save us.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Psalms 117-118.

God’s love is powerful, unfailing, and faithful.  Therefore, every person, and every group of people, should praise the Lord.  Those who fear the Lord should remember that God’s love is enduring and thus they need not fear anything else.  If God is for us, what can people do to us?  I want to circle back around to the power of God’s love.  We tend to think of power in terms of violence and destruction, but the power of God’s love is the power of building and uplifting.

In that light, I want us to look at what is going on around us and think about it differently.  There is the pandemic going on  There are the riots and looting accompanying protests  Protests which result from the abuse of power by the police.  I could go on.  Yet, the psalmist tells us that this is the day that the Lord has made.  We should rejoice and be glad in it.  Instead of viewing what is going on as a trial and a difficulty, let us view it as an opportunity to display God’s love.  Remember, today is the day that the Lord has made in love and His love is faithful.