Re:Verse passage – Psalm 98 (day one)
Join us as Executive Pastor Scott Lane, Associate Pastor Aaron Hufty, and Associate Pastor Bryan Richardson walk us through Psalm 98 in our Advent Re:Verse Series: “Psalms for the Season.”
Not Today Satan
Re:Verse passage – Psalm 85:1-3, 8-13 (day seven)
You forgave the iniquity of Your people;
You covered all their sin. vs 2-3
What must occur to have peace amongst others? All parties involved must mutually agree that fighting is not beneficial to their cause. However, peace doesn’t mean that there won’t be tension.
In advent, we recognize that the coming of Jesus brings peace to the world, but until His second coming, we are left in tension. An enemy prowls on our doorstep waiting to devour us, waiting for us to give him an inch of room so he can get his foot in the door to disrupt the peace that has been guaranteed to us. Yet, this enemy has already been defeated; his fight is futile. The fight for your eternity was won on Easter, and Advent is the opportunity for us to tell the enemy, “Not today Satan. We get peace.” And the enemy has to obey because the One who defeated him lives in us.
God Speaks Peace
Re:Verse passage – Psalm 85:1-3, 8-13(day six)
I listen carefully to what God the Lord is saying,
for he speaks peace to his faithful people. Psalm 85:
Have you ever experienced a conflict with someone you deeply care about, anxiously longing to hear the reassuring words, “I love you; we’re okay”? That seems to be the sentiment the writer of Psalm 85 conveys; Israel longed for a restored relationship with God. They listened for words of peace.
Ultimately, their waiting is fulfilled when God sends THE WORD (John 1:1). In Jesus, peace is both a declaration (God speaking) and a person. We have peace with God THROUGH Christ. Jesus didn’t just mediate our peace (through his death and resurrection), he is our daily and eternal peace with God.
Remember
Re:Verse passage – Psalm 85:1-3, 8-13(day five)
It is important, no, it is vital we remember and remind ourselves of our past experiences and encounters with the Living God. His grace. His holiness. His kindness. His strength. His glory. His wisdom. His judgements. Can you recall when you have sensed and seen these things from the Lord? As we remember God’s character and activity in our lives, our reflection brings a sense of both trust and peace. We can learn from past experiences to have confidence in His righteous judgement and wisdom. We can pray that He will continue to provide mercy and grace for His glory and our good. When that happens, we have confidence in both the lovingkindness and truthfulness of God as well as His promised peace in the middle of His righteous rule over His creation and created beings.
In Our Midst
Re:Verse passage – Psalm 85:1-3, 8-13 (day four)
It’s tempting to think we have to escape in order to find peace. We go on vacations, have personal retreats, or even tip-toe off to a quiet room away from holiday house guests in order to “find some peace.” To be sure, finding time away from the hustle of life is essential. I am constantly looking for little pockets of peace in my day, my week, and over the course of the year.
But the peace that Christ offers us isn’t something we have to escape in order to find. The Israelites in this psalm receive God’s promise of peace in the middle of their dire circumstances. This prophetic psalm is fulfilled when Christ takes on human form, entering straight into a dark world full of chaos, offering peace unlike what anyone had ever experienced. And when Jesus comes again in glory, he will break into the middle of our bleak, disordered world with lovingkindness, truth, righteousness, and peace in their fullest forms, once and for all.
Because Christ humbly took on human form and lived among us, the peace we reflect on at Advent is not far off on a mountaintop or on a remote beach somewhere. It’s in our midst now, constantly available to us through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Future
Re:Verse passage – Psalm 85:1-3, 8-13 (day three)
“You turned away from your burning anger.”
As one reads this Psalm, it becomes apparent from verses 4 and following that the first three verses have not yet occurred. Rather, these verses are forward-looking, ordered to a future of restoration that the psalmist sees coming to pass. They are in that sense prophetic. These words amount to something other than “It’ll all work out somehow.” They arise from an experience of God rooted in God’s very being – beauty, creativity, goodness, purpose. Nothing – neither hardship nor disaster nor failure nor foolishness, and most assuredly not evil – will prevail against God. There will be people who turn away from sin. There will be grace and faith and salvation – more even than you expect. Since when did the current state of things stop God’s prophetic word that all things will be made new?
Peace
Re:Verse passage – Psalm 85:1-3, 8-13 (day two)
Lovingkindness and truth have met together; Righteousness and peace have kissed each other. v. 10
During the second week of Advent, we focus on peace. There is something beyond the beautiful imagery of this verse in Psalm 85. At first glance it seems these terms work wonderfully well together: lovingkindness and truth, righteousness and peace. However, it doesn’t take much for us to look around and notice people who hold the truth are often very unloving. Righteousness, more often than not, is accompanied by a vindictive or punitive spirit. This is the reality of our fallen world. The idea that we bring truth with love is still a radical one. Two thousand years removed from Jesus commanding us to offer the other cheek to someone who strikes us, we are still struggling with a sense of justice that takes rather than gives. We have to be prepared to lose. To lose a battle, a friend, ground, or whatever for the sake of mercy. The ‘battle’ is a long one, and we must keep sight that our momentary ‘victory’ should not cost an opportunity to show love. A reminder to breathe, pray, and trust the Lord when you are given an opportunity to be a peacemaker.
Re:Verse Blog – 12/2/24
Re:Verse passage – Psalm 85:1-3, 8-13 (day one)
Join us as Senior Pastor Chris Johnson, Associate Pastor Aaron Hufty, and Associate Pastor Bryan Richardson walk us through Psalm 85:1-3, 8-13 in our Advent Re:Verse Series: “Psalms for the Season.”
Restoration and Revival
Re:Verse passage – Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19 (day seven)
O God, restore us
O God of hosts, restore us
O Lord God of hosts, restore us
Restore us. Is this not our prayer? The beauty of the intensifying refrain echoes in our heart. As our prayer deepens, so does our cry for restoration. Our heart craves and longs for the restoration with our creator, and the more we pray for it, the more we realize we need it. When that desire for restoration meets the goodness of God’s face shining upon us, that is where we will find revival.
The hope of revival isn’t in the restoration of our fortunes, nor is it in a restoration of the days of old. The hope of revival is that the Lord will shine His face upon us, restoring us with a fresh new perspective and fresh vision. It all begins with personal restoration. So on this first week of Advent we pray: restore me, restore my heart, restore my hope.
Real Lament
Re:Verse passage – Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19(day six)
Those who originally sang this psalm had every reason to lament. They likely were exiles from the northern kingdom after Assyria’s conquest. They saw their city burn, friends and family die, and now they were far from home. It was out of their deep lament and longing for restoration that hope was born.
Real lament keeps hope honest. In other words, if we do not understand our need, hope is nothing more than a word.
We begin this Advent season with HOPE. Ask the Lord to help you see your own need for rescue and restoration for today and tomorrow, which can’t help but overflow into real and daily hope in Jesus.