Learning Contentment as found in Psalm 52:1-9

3/4/2012 8:11:06 AM

SPIRITUAL DIARY

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  Learn Contentment

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Psalm 52:1-9

            Message of the verses:  We looked at the introduction and background of Psalm 52 yesterday and today we will look at the psalm.  Dr. Wiersbe writes at the end of his introduction these words:  “There has always been a certain amount of evil in high places, and God’s people must learn to handle it in a godly manner.  David paints for us three contrasting scenes.”

            “The Sinners Are Boasting (vv. 1-4):  “1 ¶  «For the choir director. A Maskil of David, when Doeg the Edomite came and told Saul and said to him, "David has come to the house of Ahimelech."» Why do you boast in evil, O mighty man? The lovingkindness of God endures all day long. 2  Your tongue devises destruction, Like a sharp razor, O worker of deceit. 3  You love evil more than good, Falsehood more than speaking what is right. Selah. 4  You love all words that devour, O deceitful tongue.”

            In one of the commentaries that I read it stated that the actual scoundrel in the story of Doeg the Edomite in killing all of the priests was actually Saul, and after thinking about it that makes sense for it was Saul who have the orders and although not one of Saul’s men would do this evil deed with the exception of Doeg the Edomite the order still came from Saul.  For Saul to order such a deed make him the one responsible for the killing.

            When we look at the term “mighty man” in verse one it could be stated as “big shot,” however the term big shot was only in the eyes of men and not in the eyes of God and when it comes down to it God is the only One who counts.  As we look at the deeds that Doeg the Edomite and Saul did we do not find it hard to find people like this in the 21^st century that we live in.  We find people who have tongues that cause evil to be done, we find people who love evil more than good.

            When we look at these verses of Psalm 52 and contrast them with Psalm 51 we see the main difference between David and Saul.  David was responsible for the death of only Uriah in his sin against the Lord and it caused so much grief and pain in his life.  David confessed his sin to the Lord, repented and then moved on because of the grace that God gave him.  We see none of this in Saul and certainly none in Doeg the Edomite.

            “The Saints Are Laughing” (vv. 5-7):  “5  But God will break you down forever; He will snatch you up and tear you away from your tent, And uproot you from the land of the living. Selah.  6 The righteous will see and fear, And will laugh at him, saying, 7  "Behold, the man who would not make God his refuge, But trusted in the abundance of his riches And was strong in his evil desire.’”       

            Dr. Wiersbe write the following in his commentary on this section:  “What Saul and Doeg did to the priestly community at Nob (1Sam. 22:6ff), the Lord would do to them, for sinners ultimately fall into the pits they dig for others (9:15; Proverbs 26:24-28; 29:6).”

            It seems that people today only want to look at the love of God and forget about the justice of God.  In this country we see people kill innocent victims only to have others then feel sorry for those who did the crime and forget about the one’s they have killed.  When one looks at the attributes of God both love and justice are there along with others and all of God’s attributes are part of who God is and all have to be satisfied.  How do we connect the love and justice of God?  We look at the cross of Jesus Christ and we see God’s love for Isaiah 53 speaks of it was pleasing to the Lord to kill Him “10 ¶  But the LORD was pleased To crush Him, putting Him to grief; If He would render Himself as a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, And the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand.”  (Isaiah 53:10)  After making the movie about the crucifixion of Jesus Christ Mel Gibson was asked who it was that killed Christ and his answer was “we did,” but after listening to a sermon from a visiting Pastor he said that according to Isaiah 53 it was God who had the Lord Jesus killed.  When we look at John 3:16 we see that God gave His Son, He gave His Son to be a sacrifice for our sins and we see both love and justice along with all His other attributes at the cross and it was all for us!

            “The Faithful Are Serving” (vv.9-9):  “8  But as for me, I am like a green olive tree in the house of God; I trust in the lovingkindness of God forever and ever. 9  I will give You thanks forever, because You have done it, And I will wait on Your name, for it is good, in the presence of Your godly ones.”

            We see a contrast between those who the Lord will uproot, like uprooted trees in verse five and the “green olive tree in the house of God” in verse eight, for this speaks of David and all believers while the uprooted ones are speaking of Saul and Doeg along with all who will reject the love of God.  David’s dynasty would last forever, while Saul’s would end because he did not follow the Lord wholly.  We know that an olive tree lives for a long time and offers blessing from its fruit and so would they dynasty of David. 

            Dr. Wiersbe points out that the phrase “wait on You name” means “to hope and depend on the character of God as expressed in His great name.”  He goes on to write, “The psalm ends with David vowing to praise the Lord in the congregation as soon as God established him in his kingdom.  The private victories God give us should be announced publicly for the encouragement of God’s people.  Meanwhile, through evil may seem to triumph, we must continue to obey and serve the Lord and not get discouraged.  The ‘last laugh’ belongs to the Lord’s people.”

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  As I look at this psalm and how I should react and learn from it I find myself going back to the thing that I am trying to learn, and hope that the Holy Spirit of God will continue to teach me and that is contentment, for when I look at the evilness around me in a world that seems to be heading for destruction my hope must remain in the Lord and in the plans that He has, not only for this world, but for me as His child.

My Steps of Faith for today:

1.      Continue to learn contentment.   3/4/2012 9:00:45 AM