Tag: psalms of ascent

Psalm 133 – The Blessing of Unity and Harmony

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year ALeave a comment
Ascend to Jerusalem by Dan Livni
“Ascend to Jerusalem” by Dan Livni

Oh, how wonderful, how pleasing it is
when God’s people all come together as one!
It is like the sweet-smelling oil that is poured over the high priest’s head,
that runs down his beard flowing over his robes.
It is like a gentle rain from Mount Hermon falling on Mount Zion.
It is there that the Lord has promised his blessing of eternal life. (ERV)

Unity, solidarity, and harmony are a beautiful blessing. Disunity, division, and fragmentation are an ugly curse. Within all families and faith communities are a diverse bunch of people – which brings the potential of both wonderful fellowship and disagreeing fights.

Today’s reading is a psalm of ascent. It is one of a group of psalms the Israelites would say and sing together as they made their pilgrimage to Jerusalem and ascended the temple mount to worship the Lord. Their common purpose and shared experience led to a blessed unity among all the worshipers.

The metaphors the psalm uses are meant to convey the feeling and impact of a unified people’s blessing as one harmonious bunch. The reference to oil communicates abundance and extravagant blessing beyond expectation. The gentle rain or the dew pictures the giving of life to a parched landscape. The psalm is a celebration of life’s simple pleasures, enjoyed with friends and family.

People created in the image of God are hard-wired for community. Rather than existing in isolation, doing our own thing, and keeping to ourselves, the Lord’s intention for humans is to be close enough to one another to rejoice with those experiencing joy and to weep with those mourning a loss. True community requires unity and harmony.

To live in harmony with one another means we regard everyone the same way by not playing favorites, being condescending, or giving more weight to one group more than another. It is a willingness to interact, work, and play with all kinds of people – not just those whom we like or help us get ahead in life. We are designed by our Creator to live and work together in common purposes. In fact, it takes a great deal of effort.

Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.  Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace (Ephesians 4:2-3, NIV).

Think about what we have in Christ: the encouragement he has brought us, the comfort of his love, our sharing in his Spirit, and the mercy and kindness he has shown us. If you enjoy these blessings, then do what will make my joy complete: Agree with each other and show your love for each other. Be united in your goals and in the way you think. In whatever you do, do not let selfishness or pride be your guide. Be humble, and honor others more than yourselves. Do not be interested only in your own life, but care about the lives of others too (Philippians 2:1-4, ERV). 

If we desire the enjoyment of blessed relationships we will engage in genuine conversation, focused listening, and equal dialogue; simply stating opinions at each other will not do the trick.

Yes, we are to work at unity and harmony because we can have a nasty tendency to think better of ourselves than what is true, and of others what is not so good.  We might inflate our positive qualities and abilities, especially in comparison to other people.  Numerous research studies have revealed the propensity to overestimate ourselves.

For example, when one research study asked a million high school students how well they got along with their peers, none of the students rated themselves below average. As a matter of fact, 60% of students believed they were in the top 10%; and, 25% rated themselves in the top 1%.

College professors were just as biased about their abilities – 2% rated themselves below average; 10% were average and 63% were above average, while 25% rated themselves as truly exceptional. Of course, this is statistically impossible. One researcher summarized the data this way: “It’s the great contradiction: the average person believes he is a better person than the average person.”

Christian psychologist Mark McMinn contends that this study reveals our pride. He writes, “One of the clearest conclusions of social science research is that we are proud. We think better of ourselves than we really are, we see our faults in faint black and white rather than in vivid color, and we assume the worst in others while assuming the best in ourselves.”

Where sinful pride rules, disharmony runs amok within a community. The acid test of harmonious love is how we treat the lowly. One of the great preachers in church history, St. John Chrysostom (the fourth century Bishop of Constantinople) had this to say:

“If a poor man comes into your church behave like him and do not put on airs because of your riches.  In Christ there is no rich or poor.  Do not be ashamed of him because of his outward dress but receive him because of his inward faith.  If you see him in sorrow, do not hesitate to comfort him, and if he is prospering, do not feel shy about sharing in his pleasure.  If you think you are a great person, then think others are also.  If you think they are humble and lowly, then think the same of yourself.”

We cannot function apart from harmony. Consider a tuning fork. It delivers a true pitch by two tines vibrating together. Muffle either side, even a little, and the note disappears. Neither tine individually produces the pure note. Only when both tines vibrate is the correct pitch heard.  Harmony is not a matter of give and take and compromise to make each other happy or satisfied.  Harmony comes through a common mission and purpose which engages in shared experiences of loving and caring for others.

My Christian convictions and tradition tell me that the Word of God is applied by the Spirit of God through the people of God.  We are to embrace community.  We are to do life together.  We are to view everyone as my brother or sister. After all, we are our brother’s keeper.

So, let us ascend the hill of the Lord together. Let us worship God together with glad and sincere hearts. Let us be mindful of all our brothers and sisters, no matter who they are.

 

Psalm 134 – Bless the Lord

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year ALeave a comment

 

Mountain staircase

Come, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord,
who stand by night in the house of the Lord!
Lift up your hands to the holy place,
and bless the Lord.

May the Lord, maker of heaven and earth,
bless you from Zion. (NRSV)

Psalms 120-134 comprise a collection of short songs of ascent meant to guide Jewish pilgrims in their communal trek up to the city of Jerusalem, and ultimately to the temple mount.  The rhythm of the pious ancient Israelites centered round particular festivals, seasons, and Sabbath.  Taking the annual pilgrimage to the Holy City was an especially anticipated time of year.  This yearly cycle brought both increased faith and needed spiritual stability to the people.  It reminded them of the sound theology that God cannot be moved, and he will always be there.

This, psalm, as the last in these songs of ascent, is something of a benediction. It is a blessing – for both God and the worshiper. To “bless” is to express approval. When God blesses people, it is a divine endorsement upon their lives. In other words, God’s blessing is an encouraging sanction that the worshiper is authentic – she is the real deal. In the context of this psalm, the worshiper is anticipating that God will approve of the praise, adoration, and sacrifice given when they reach the temple mount.

Conversely, when people bless God, they are expressing confirmation that God is who he says he is – he keeps his promises and his divine character is always just, good, and loving. We tend to not be in the habit of offering blessings, that is, unless someone sneezes in the room. Yet, blessing is an important and integral dimension to spirituality.

At the end of the age, there will be unceasing blessing pouring forth from all God’s creatures:

Then I [the Apostle John] looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice:

“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
To receive power and riches and wisdom,
And strength and honor and glory and blessing!”

And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying:

“Blessing and honor and glory and power
Be to Him who sits on the throne,
And to the Lamb, forever and ever!”

Then the four living creatures said, “Amen!” And the twenty-four elders fell down and worshiped Him who lives forever and ever. (Revelation 5:11-14, NKJV)

This all causes me to wonder what our daily lives would be like if they were shaped with rhythms of blessing God. The psalmist knew something about this:

“Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous laws.” (Psalm 119:164)

Here are a few ideas for you to take or leave:

  • Today, set seven alarms and space them throughout the day (i.e. every 2 ½ hours). When the alarm goes off, stop what you are doing and take a minute to say today’s psalm aloud and/or other Scripture. At the end of the day, count your blessings from this activity and express them to God.
  • If you have stairs in your home, keep a small Bible next to the bottom of the staircase. Every time you go up, take the Bible in hand, and read one of the psalms of ascent as you walk up. Many of them (like today’s) are short enough to say at least once before you reach the top of the stairs. After a few days or a week of doing this, count your blessings and share with another about your experience.
  • In this time of virtual communication and reliance on the phone, call or connect with a few friends and together read aloud some or all the psalms of ascent. Then, share your blessings and bless God with one another.

The big idea here is that the biblical psalter is a book of poems, songs, and prayers which are meant to have liberal use. They were designed for worship. How will you worship God today?

Click 10,000 Reasons (Bless the Lord) sung by Chris Tomlin as we are mindful of God’s goodness.

Psalm 122

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            This is a psalm of ascents, meaning that the faithful pilgrims living outside of Jerusalem would enter the city, literally walking uphill and continuing up to the temple mount.  There they would worship God at the holy place.  As they would spend the hours and/or days walking and anticipating the worship, the people would quote the several psalms of ascent together.
 
            Within this psalm we are told that part of Israel’s decree in approaching the Lord is to give thanks.  The Jews were to have an attitude of gratitude when they came to Jerusalem and the house of God.  Each pilgrimage to Jerusalem was to have a marked expression of thanksgiving to God for giving them a place to worship and a land to dwell within.
 
            I cannot help wondering if our current situation of attending church services would be much more appreciated and impactful if we took the mental and emotional posture of gratitude when approaching worship.  Within my own church building there is a flight of stairs to ascend in reaching the sanctuary.  Slowly up the stairs I can give thanks for one thing in each step.  Even if you attend a church with a zero entry, you could still give thanks to God while walking from the parking lot to the building.  The point is that worship of God is not to be approached idly without thought or intent.  Just showing up and flopping down in a seat almost daring that the worship leaders and pastor bless them is very far from the imagination of the psalmist for approaching the sovereign God.
 

 

            Mighty God, you have given me a place to live and to worship.  I give thanks to you this day for your grace and saving actions through Jesus Christ, my Lord.  Amen.

Psalm 124

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
            A healthy way of viewing the biblical Psalms of the Old Testament is to look at them as the church’s prayer book.  The Psalms give voice to the experiences of our lives, especially when we have become mute with overwhelming circumstances.  One of the ways in which the ancient Israelites remained faithful was to take at least one annual pilgrimage to Jerusalem.  As they walked the slow journey to the city, and ascended the mountain to its pinnacle where the Temple stood, the Jews used the psalms of ascent to help them remember the Lord’s faithfulness and praise God.
 
            The actual physical trek up the mountain would mimic the spiritual experiences of the Israelites coming from the valley of the shadow of death, only to rise above seeming tragedy to the heights of God’s deliverance.  Israel was often alone in the world, with many enemies and only God to help them.  Imagine a large coterie of Jews joyfully ascending the temple mount shouting to heaven:  “Our help is in the name of the LORD, who made heaven and earth.”  Picture them searing the character of God on their hearts through loudly proclaiming:  “If it had not been the LORD who was on our side… then they would have swallowed us up alive.”
 
            If you have a flight of stairs in your house or your church, try a little exercise in this week:  leave a small copy of the Bible at the foot of the staircase and each time you ascend to the next floor say Psalm 124 or one of the other psalms of ascent aloud as you go up.  At the end of the week, take some time to discuss your experience with your spouse, friend, or pastor.  Think about how to further engraft the Psalms into your life so that they form and shape you in fresh ways.
            Saving God, just as you delivered the ancient Israelites from their bondage and brought them into a good land, so help me to rise above my circumstances and see your guidance in all things, through Jesus Christ my Lord.  Amen.