Psalm 18
August 18, 2024 Father, I love you. I love you. I love you.
You are my rock, my fortress, my shield, my ever present help in times of trouble.
You are the rescuer and you are the savior. You are worthy to be praised.
How many are our enemies, Lord, both within us and outside of us — the world tries to gain our allegiance, our flesh convinces us sinful pleasures are worth suffering for, and the devil joins in the chorus with words of affirmation … and then condemnation.
How many are our enemies, Lord … and how helpless we are to save ourselves from them.
From birth, the world’s chains wrap tightly around us, our sinful nature lies close at hand, and the devil eagerly evangelizes to a new prospective student.
If not for your saving hand, Lord, we would be lost to these enemies forever.
But in your goodness and lovingkindness, you saved us, not according to works done by us in righteousness, but according to your great mercy.
Lord, it is you who thunders from heaven our song of deliverance. It is you who sends fire and ice to destroy these enemies of ours — freezing them and their influence and then reigning fire on them forever.
It is you who takes flight and comes swiftly to our aid. It is you, Lord, who are angry for our sake.
Lord, it would have been just for you to be angry with us … for we follow blindly into sin and destruction and rebellion against you … and yet somehow, the mystery of all mysteries, you delight in us and desire to save us.
For you so loved the world (and out of that love) you sent Christ.
You sent Christ to be the savior we need, to live the blameless, righteous life we could not, to actually experience the dark clouds of your displeasure we deserved to experience for our sin.
Sin, death, and your holy, righteous wrath were far too mighty for us to stand against, but you have raised us up from these deep waters to a new life in Jesus Christ.
Father, in view of these mercies, let us, like David, love you deeply and treasure you supremely.
In Christ’s name we pray and all God’s people said, Amen.