Friday 14 December, 2018

As I read this Psalm, it’s easy to forget that David turns the words being spoken against him into a song. And it’s a pretty sad song. It’s a song about his total ruin, his death, the loss of all his possessions and the misery inflicted on his family.

But then the song takes a turn in verse 21. David calls out to God to deal well with him, not because of anything good that he has done, but because of God’s reputation.

God deals with us, he acts for us, not because of anything that we have done, but because of who he is.

If God only did things for me because of what I have done, then the danger is that I would start to believe that it is because of me. I would become proud, as if somehow I had earnt God’s goodness. The flip side to this is thinking that God is punishing me because of something I had done.

Both of these are totally wrong.

David is so right to ask God to act purely because of God’s reputation.

God loves me, not because I am worthy of it, but because God is love, and because he created me. He loves me because he chooses to love me.

He is good to me because he is a good God.

Father God, you are good, you are kind, loving, compassionate, generous, faithful to me because that is who you are. Thank you, you are amazing.

Written by Andrew Martin