Psalm 118:1-9 New American Standard Bible 1995
Thanksgiving for the Lord’s Saving Goodness.
118 Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good;
For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
2 Oh let Israel say,
“His lovingkindness is everlasting.”
3 Oh let the house of Aaron say,
“His lovingkindness is everlasting.”
4 Oh let those who [a]fear the Lord say,
“His lovingkindness is everlasting.”
5 From my distress I called upon [b]the Lord;
[c]The Lord answered me and set me in a large place.
6 The Lord is for me; I will not fear;
What can man do to me?
7 The Lord is for me among those who help me;
Therefore I will look with satisfaction on those who hate me.
8 It is better to take refuge in the Lord
Than to trust in man.
9 It is better to take refuge in the Lord
Than to trust in princes.
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
“What can mere mortals do to me?”
Pushed to the wall, I called to God;
from the wide open spaces, he answered.
God’s now at my side and I’m not afraid;
who would dare lay a hand on me? (Psalm 118:6 – 8 Message)
Lately, I am running into days that I feel; Am I the only one who balks at the question that the psalmist asks here—“What can mere mortals do to me?”
“What can mere mortals do to me that I have not already done to myself twice?”
I think we all know what the psalmist is getting at here, but people can be mean!
They can hurt us verbally, emotionally, psychologically, and physically. And my guess is that we’ve all experienced at least one of those hurts, if not all of them.
I don’t necessarily live in daily fear of their physical harm, but some people do—and that can be devastating. I am learning, relearning the limits of my heart.
However, I do live in an irrational fear of being hurt by other people’s words.
Every time I do stretch the limits of my surgically repaired heart, I find myself subconsciously feeling “watched and assessed and evaluated,” for limitations.
Limitations I want no part of, self assigned, self imposed limitations I struggle mightily against believing even exist, limitations I feel I am too young to have at my age, limitations I may just have to listen to others who’ll say: “accept it.”
That is not the sort, measure, of “acceptance” which I will surrender myself to.
Still, the psalmist knew all of that “acceptance” as well as we do. He was pursued, threatened with bodily and spiritual harm. But even in the midst of threats and dangers, he was able to give thanks to God, confess the Lord was with him, and be certain that mere mortals could not ultimately destroy him.
Even if the mere mortal was himself turning against himself, body, mind, spirit.
While people might be able to hurt our bodies or minds, they can’t hurt our souls. And while people can hurt us in this world, they can’t hurt us forever.
That is the message the psalmist wants us to hear.
We aren’t assured of health and safety on this earth.
But we don’t need to fear what anyone on this earth can do to us. They cannot control our destiny. With God, we can be certain that our destiny is in his hands.
A Stone Worth Accepting? A Savior Worth Following?
Psalm 118:17-29 The Message
17-20 I didn’t die. I lived!
And now I’m telling the world what God did.
God tested me, he pushed me hard,
but he didn’t hand me over to Death.
Swing wide the city gates—the righteous gates!
I’ll walk right through and thank God!
This Temple Gate belongs to God,
so the victors can enter and praise.
21-25 Thank you for responding to me;
you’ve truly become my salvation!
The stone the masons discarded as flawed
is now the capstone!
This is God’s work.
We rub our eyes—we can hardly believe it!
This is the very day God acted—
let’s celebrate and be festive!
Salvation now, God. Salvation now!
Oh yes, God—a free and full life!
26-29 Blessed are you who enter in God’s name—
from God’s house we bless you!
God is God,
he has bathed us in light.
Adorn the shrine with garlands,
hang colored banners above the altar!
You’re my God, and I thank you.
O my God, I lift high your praise.
Thank God—he’s so good.
His love never quits!
“I didn’t die. I lived!
And now I’m telling the world what God did.
God tested me, he pushed me hard,
but he didn’t hand me over to Death.”
Most of my life, I’ve known the facts of the Christian faith: God made the world, Jesus came into the world, Jesus died for the sins of the world, and Jesus came back to life. If I believe in Him, I get to be with Him forever. But I ignored truth.
But as I got older, I met people who questioned the truth of what I believed, of what truth I ignored at unexpected moments, doubts crept through my mind:
Is any of it really true?
What have I been ignoring?
What have I not been purposely paying attention to?
Confusingly, some people told me it didn’t matter who or what I believed in.
“As long as you believe in something, that’s what counts,” one told me.
“Believe in yourself because you are the only one you know you can count on.”
“Nothing really matters, all roads either lead to heaven, or to hell.” another said. so it is easier to say You believe what you want, and I’ll believe my way.”
And I wondered more. Would I reach the end of life and find out none of what I believed or purposely ignored about Jesus was true? Was I wrong for thinking or believing there was only one way to reach God? Why would Jesus ever say that no one could come to God except through Him (John 14:6)? That’s allot of Ego!
When others came to me and challenged my beliefs, face to face, challenged my faith, I realized what I longed for was a clear example of why only Jesus saves.
I found my answer in the form of a rock.
Someone then showed me a very large rock, close to being a boulder, which had clearly been stuck in the ground for a very long time – and that someone dared, challenged me, to try and move it even one inch from its present firm position.
That someone taught me, in that moment, that rock was part of an illustration which Jesus Himself gave to show that even the weight and measure of our day to day burdens, our earthly lives contain problems that have only one solution.
According to Matthew 21:38-46, in the last week of His life, Jesus used the fitting image of a cornerstone to describe His unique purpose and identity, quoting a prophecy about Himself in Psalm 118:22: “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.” Asking those people around them if they had ever seriously bothered to even read and study and share the Scriptures?
In ancient buildings and walls, certain unique stones, different from typical, rectangular building stones, were used at pivotal points in the structure.
For example, a cornerstone could set a foundation or anchor a wall.
Just as a stone different from all the rest is the only one that will fit the need to hold up a wall or establish a firm foundation, only Jesus can restore our world to what God wants it to be.
Jesus may not fit the mold of what people are looking for in a Savior, but as the the only authentic Cornerstone, He has a specific, essential purpose: to save the world from sin, to provide those who accept Him, believe, the gift of eternal life.
When we encounter others who insist that all belief systems are equal, it is hard to stand apart as having a different view.
We may be accused of being insensitive, narrow-minded and unaccepting.
We may suffer socially, spiritually, or even physically, for believing there’s only one way, one truth, one life, to salvation. But I’m so very thankful Jesus lovingly invites all people to accept Him and trust in Him, and teach He has given us an everyday example to clarify how He is, and must be, the only way to get to God.
Lord, thank You for Your patience in showing me, teaching, why Your Son is the essential piece I need to draw near to You. Give me courage to share that beautiful message even with those who’ll challenge my confidence in You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Psalm 91 The Message
91 1-13 You who sit down in the High God’s presence,
spend the night in Shaddai’s shadow,
Say this: “God, you’re my refuge.
I trust in you and I’m safe!”
That’s right—he rescues you from hidden traps,
shields you from deadly hazards.
His huge outstretched arms protect you—
under them you’re perfectly safe;
his arms fend off all harm.
Fear nothing—not wild wolves in the night,
not flying arrows in the day,
Not disease that prowls through the darkness,
not disaster that erupts at high noon.
Even though others succumb all around,
drop like flies right and left,
no harm will even graze you.
You’ll stand untouched, watch it all from a distance,
watch the wicked turn into corpses.
Yes, because God’s your refuge,
the High God your very own home,
Evil can’t get close to you,
harm can’t get through the door.
He ordered his angels
to guard you wherever you go.
If you stumble, they’ll catch you;
their job is to keep you from falling.
You’ll walk unharmed among lions and snakes,
and kick young lions and serpents from the path.
14-16 “If you’ll hold on to me for dear life,” says God,
“I’ll get you out of any trouble.
I’ll give you the best of care
if you’ll only get to know and trust me.
Call me and I’ll answer, be at your side in bad times;
I’ll rescue you, then throw you a party.
I’ll give you a long life,
give you a long drink of salvation!”
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 