Monday: Remembering History and the Praise of God
Daily Lesson for Monday 4th of March 2024
Read Psalms 105:1-45. What historical events and their lessons are highlighted in this psalm?
Psalms 105:1-45 recalls key events that shaped the covenantal relationship between the Lord and His people Israel.
Image © Lifeway Collection at Goodsalt.com
It focuses on God’s covenant with Abraham to give the Promised Land to him and his descendants, and how this promise, confirmed to Isaac and Jacob, was providentially fulfilled through Joseph, Moses, and Aaron, and in the time of the conquest of Canaan. The psalm gives hope to God’s people in all generations because God’s marvelous works in the past guarantee God’s unchanging love to His people in all times (Psalms 105:1-5, 7, 8).
Psalms 105:1-45 resembles Psalms 78:1-72 (see yesterday’s study) in highlighting God’s faithfulness to His people in history, and it does so in order to glorify God and to inspire faithfulness. However, unlike Psalms 78:1-72, Psalms 105:1-45 does not mention the people’s past mistakes. This psalm has a different purpose.
Instead, history is retold in Psalms 105:1-45 through the lives of Israel’s greatest patriarchs, showing God’s providential leading and the patriarchs’ patient endurance of hardships. The patriarchs’ perseverance and loyalty to God were richly rewarded. Thus, Psalms 105:1-45 invites people to emulate the patriarchs’ faith and trustingly wait on God’s deliverance in their time.
Psalms 105:1-45 possesses a hymnal note (Psalms 105:1–7), showing that in order to truly praise God, God’s people need to know the facts of their history. History provides both validation for our faith and countless reasons for praising God.
The worshipers are addressed as the seed of Abraham and children of Jacob (Psalms 105:6), thereby deeming them to be the fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham to make of him a great nation (Genesis 15:3-6). The psalmist underscores the continuity between the patriarchs and the subsequent generations of God’s people. The psalmist stresses that “His judgments are in _all the earth_” (Psalms 105:7, NKJV; emphasis supplied), thereby admonishing the worshipers not to forget that “our God” is also the sovereign Lord of the whole world and that His loving-kindness extends to all peoples (Psalms 96:1, Psalms 97:1). It is, clearly, a call to faithfulness to every generation of believers.
How should we, as Seventh-day Adventists, see ourselves in this line of people, from Abraham on? _(See Galatians 3:29.)_ What lessons should we learn from this history?
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Today, as my grandson embarks on his first year at Avondale University, the winds of nostalgia blow. Sixty-one years ago, I too started at Avondale College (as it was then known). My story, however, wasn't one of immediate success.
At 17, fresh out of high school and with only pocket money as my life experience, I found myself at a university – a place that demanded real money, a resource I depended on my parents for. The fees then were roughly 300 pounds annually, a significant amount considering it represented almost four months of my father's salary. I fell short academically in both my first and second years – a slow learner, I suppose. Dad, through it all, remained a pillar of support, footing the bill for my failures as well. Back then, my youthful perception painted him as an out-of-touch, rigid figure who couldn't understand the youth.
Yet, those first years were filled with a different kind of learning – the independence of living away from home for the first time, exploring a new country (Sydney wasn't far, and I became a frequent visitor), and, as was the fashion of the Beatlemania era, letting my hair grow a little longer.
Looking back, I am humbled by the sacrifices my parents made to ensure I received a good education. Despite my academic struggles and youthful indiscretions, their support remained unwavering. They covered not just my fees, but even my increased food costs. Their letters, devoid of reprimand, were filled with encouragement and news from home.
It was only after coming home, working for several months in a concrete pipe factory, that I finally found my academic footing.
Reflecting on my parents' unwavering love during my turbulent teenage years, I see my grandson embarking on a similar journey, and it serves as a powerful reminder: grandparents, too, can strive to repay the debt our own parents so generously bore.
The real hero in the historical psalms is, however, an unconditional love – the love of God. Like my parents, God remains by our side even when we falter, even when we stray. His love inspires us to question: if this is the love we receive, what responsibility do we hold towards those within our reach?
It's essential to focus on the good things that happen to us each day and remember that God is always good. Sin caused a disruption in paradise's beauty, which was passed down through one man and affects all of us. Death and suffering became a part of our DNA.
However, we also have the opportunity to inherit eternal life. The difference is that this gift requires a free choice. Some people may reject it because it's hard to believe that something so valuable could be given for free. The truth is that anyone can inherit eternal life through one man, who was both God and human. This is the Good News, and His name will be remembered forever.
I grew up in a broken family with 6 siblings. One is no longer, due to a medical disorder. One day, in our adult life while visiting my Aunt. She said, “my Uncle and her thought us girls were going to be either, on the streets, in jail or dead”. As I look back, (and though we knew not God), I see His leading through past mistakes and bad choices. All five of us girls are now living good productive Christian lives. God’s Love and leading amazes me in history and encourages me daily, and with the future.
I often think of Joseph who was sold by his brothers, enslaved in a country he knew not. Imprisoned, accused falsely. All because of mistakes and decisions made by himself and others. Joseph did not know what the future held. God did.
Our God will lead us to His promise land. He is faithful.
I Praise Him, Love Him and Thank Him. He is always good.
Blessings
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“History provides both validation for our faith and countless reasons for praising God.” I would like to add that, in addition to this valuable aspect of our faith, the Holy Spirit was given to all to aluminate to the believer's changed heart and mind the importance and grandeur of these past events.
Psalm 105:1-5 - The believer’s heart and mind, even in today's callous times, can still be captivated by the grandeur of God’s work on man’s behalf. The faithful can with heartfelt devotion engage in praising and thanking the LORD for all the marvelous work He has done to bring humanity out from the darkness of this world into His wondrous Light!
The time has now come when the faithful from all over the world can worship God in Sprit and Truth; the Holy Spirit sees to that! It took a long time looking at it from the perspective of mankind, though we know that this has been the goal of God’s plan from the Beginning of Creation and His Faithfulness will see it through to the end.
Though God’s Plan took a few major adjustments, His Grace found that in this dispensation He would manifest Himself through His Son and the Holy Spirit in the heart and mind of all people living in all parts of the world – and this act of His Love is forever worthy of our praise and adoration!
There is no history from any time in our SDA past or even in my Catholic past, of First Born Baby Boys losing their lives because Our Enemies wanted us gone from the earth. Then, the History of Psalm 105 stops where the Israelites are given the land of Canaan and also God's Laws. But then Israel's History goes on with Prophets, and Kings, and then another 70 years of servitude under another Nation. Then there is seeming " Historical Silence" until God's own Son Jesus Appears but is rejected by His Own Nation and Crucified by Rome. And now here we are 2,000 plus or minus years since then. And God's Promise in Deuteronomy 4:29,30 is still a very "Precious Promise" to me. I always find Him when I "Search for Him with all my heart, soul, and mind!" God is so, so, so, GOOD!