Psalm 28 - be their shepherd and carry them

Psalm 28:1To you, O Lord, I call; my rock, be not deaf to me, lest, if you be silent to me, I become like those who go down to the pit.

2Hear the voice of my pleas for mercy, when I cry to you for help, when I lift up my hands toward your most holy sanctuary.

3Do not drag me off with the wicked, with the workers of evil, who speak peace with their neighbors while evil is in their hearts.

4Give to them according to their work and according to the evil of their deeds; give to them according to the work of their hands; render them their due reward.

5Because they do not regard the works of the Lord or the work of his hands, he will tear them down and build them up no more.

6Blessed be the Lord! For he has heard the voice of my pleas for mercy.

7The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him.

8The Lord is the strength of his people; he is the saving refuge of his anointed.

9Oh, save your people and bless your heritage! Be their shepherd and carry them forever.

 

It was nice for the last week to relook at some of the stories surrounding Easter week. Today, I come back to the Psalms of David and the reality of his struggles. Normally, today would be a frantic time for many people who were waiting until the last minute to file their taxes. This year, the IRS and the State have extended the date for filing and paying your taxes to July 15th. However, that just gives us more time to think about the spread of the coronavirus and the struggles of our economy. 

In this Psalm, David's struggles were with his own temptations to be dragged off with the people whose deeds are evil. David knows that to follow in their direction would be destruction for him. He has the example set for him by king Saul. He has seen the countless people in his employment and he has watched the fruitless acts of those in his kingdom. Those who speak peace with their neighbors yet have evil in their hearts will end up with the devious choices they make coming right back upon themselves. Another part of the Bible says, "what you sow, you will reap." The way you treat other people will be the way other people treat you. It is nice to see the news media covering more and more feel-good stories about the good people are doing for one another. I could only hope they will continue to share these stories when the virus is gone. People are doing this kind of good all the time, even when we are not in the midst of a crisis. 

David finds his strength in the LORD, the God of Israel. He puts his trust in God and believes he receives a great benefit from Him. And David remembers to give God the thanks for what He has done. 

That is one of the dilemmas of the Christian faith, we want God to be near us in the times of trouble and then often we turn back to trusting in our own strength when the storms of life pass us by. How will my life be different when this virus is under control, when there is a vaccine? Will I still trust in the LORD? Will I still call upon Him and let Him be my strength? 

David's concern is for God to save His people. We know that He has chosen to do that through the voice of people who have been sent to share the good news of our sins being forgiven in the death and resurrection of Jesus. And ours are the voices. God desires to use us to speak to the people of this world and tell them about the love of Jesus. 

David instructs God to bless His heritage. The heritage David is talking about is the people of Israel, and yet those are the people whose leaders rejected God's blessing in Jesus and put Him to death. The heritage God had in mind was the whole of the world; Israel and also the other nations.

With the words, "be their shepherd and carry them," David is referring to something he knows all too well, the needs of the sheep. And he sees us as sheep who cannot exist without a shepherd to guide us. David knows that God is a good shepherd who will lead us in the right path and carry us when we are weary. 

Do not give up on God when the pandemic is over. Let Him always be your strength. Give Him the okay to carry you when you need extra care. It is such a joy to daily spend extra time with Jesus because we are "sheltering in place." Learn how valuable that is now while you have a chance and build a habit you can take with you into the "life after the virus." Don't stop spending time with Jesus because the storm clears and the sun shines again. Come out of this crisis of life with habits that continue to deepen your faith and increase your witness to others who need what Jesus has to offer. And be the one of the voices that help others find their strength in Jesus. 

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May you be blessed with health and hope in this time.

Pastor Edd