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Welcome to
Devotions for Worship where we meditate on the appointed Scripture readings for
the upcoming Sunday. I am Pastor Eric Tritten from Gloria Dei Lutheran Church
in Hudson, OH. Thank you for being with me today.
The psalm for the
4th Sunday of Advent is a psalm of praise. In keeping with our
Gospel and Old Testament lesson, you will probably notice that it references
God’s promise to David to establish his offspring and build his throne so that
it lasts forever. This promise was kept in God’s steadfast love and
faithfulness to save us from sin and death, which is definitely something we
should praise God for!
There are couple
things we should comment on before reading the psalm. First, this psalm is
called a maskil, which may be a musical term which my Lutheran Study Bible
indicates might mean a skilled or artistic piece. Second, the psalm’s author is
Ethan the Ezrahite. This is the only psalm that identifies Ethan as its author,
but he is mentioned in 1 Kings 4:31 as very wise man. Lastly, the word selah
appears again. Remember that one of the thoughts about this word is that it is
an instruction to pause or an interlude to give time to meditate on what had
previously been said.
So, let’s take a
look at this first part of Psalm 89.
Ps. 89:1–5 (ESV)
A Maskil of Ethan
the Ezrahite.
I will sing of
the steadfast love of the LORD, forever;
with my mouth I
will make known your faithfulness to all generations.
2 For I said, "Steadfast love
will be built up forever;
in the heavens
you will establish your faithfulness."
3 You have said, "I have made
a covenant with my chosen one;
I have sworn to
David my servant:
4 'I will establish your offspring
forever,
and build your
throne for all generations.'" Selah
5 Let the heavens praise your
wonders, O LORD,
your faithfulness
in the assembly of the holy ones!
Comments
When the psalmist
says, “I will sing of the steadfast love of the Lord, forever,” the word that
we translate steadfast love is the word chessed
in Hebrew. This word is beautiful and rich in meaning. It carries the sense of
love, and of loyalty, and commitment, and mercy, and goodness all wrapped up in
one word. I like to translate it with the word, “grace.” I will sing of the
Lord’s grace, forever. But even that word, in and of itself, falls short of the
wonder of God’s steadfast love as we consider our sin, His forgiveness, our
rebellion, His determined love, our lack of worthiness, and His insistence on
pouring his love out on us.
So we sing of God’s
steadfast love, forever. And that includes how He faithfully kept his covenant
promise with great David, giving him an even greater son – a greater descendant
– who reigns forever. He reigns forever because, while He is David’s heir,
Jesus is also the eternal Son of God.
Ponder the
richness of God’s chessed – his
steadfast love. Wonder at God’s faithfulness because He has kept His promise to
David giving an eternal heir who reigns forever – our Creator and Redeemer,
Jesus Christ.
Ps. 89:1–5 (ESV)
A Maskil of Ethan
the Ezrahite.
I will sing of
the steadfast love of the LORD, forever;
with my mouth I
will make known your faithfulness to all generations.
2 For I said, "Steadfast love
will be built up forever;
in the heavens
you will establish your faithfulness."
3 You have said, "I have made
a covenant with my chosen one;
I have sworn to
David my servant:
4 'I will establish your offspring
forever,
and build your
throne for all generations.'" Selah
5 Let the heavens praise your
wonders, O LORD,
your faithfulness
in the assembly of the holy ones!
Prayers
O God, your
steadfast love and faithfulness are worthy of songs and praises in all
generations. Thank You for showing us mercy, love, kindness and grace although
we have not deserved these things. Thank You for being faithful when we have
been faithless. Forgive us for the sake of David’s offspring whom you
established forever, who sits on the throne for all generations, our Lord
Jesus. Let the heavens praise your wonders, O LORD, let all creation, including
us, worship you in the assembly of the holy ones! Amen.
Memory Verse:
Luke 2:1-20
Thank you so much
for using Devotions for Worship, I pray that our time together has blessed you
and given you something to meditate on – some reminder of God’s grace to rattle
around in your brain – for the rest of the day.
I want to remind
you to be prayerfully and thoughtfully generous in the giving of alms during
this Advent season. Pray that God open your eyes, your heart, and your hand to
help others in need.
Another
devotional habit we can use to help us meditate on God’s word is memorization.
Would you do me a
favor? If you got something out of this devotional time, would you like and/or
share it on Facebook, Twitter, or wherever you do social media? That would help
me get the word out, and hopefully help these devotions be a blessing to
others.
God bless you!
Comments